


A FALLEN ANGEL

by Micky_bay



Category: No Fandom
Genre: Angels vs. Demons, Fallen Angels, Fantasy, Magic, Multi, Seers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-16
Updated: 2016-02-18
Packaged: 2018-03-18 05:15:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 42
Words: 32,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3557387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Micky_bay/pseuds/Micky_bay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff"><p>((A/N): Guess who learned how to write dialog! From now on I will be writing properly. Thanks for dealing with it up till now. I'll try to update the other chapters.)</p></blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Justin's pov.  
(story starts in Stratford General hospital)

"I can't believe you broke your arm again." My mom complained as we sat in the emergency bay. "I told you not to go skateboarding at night."

"Ryan and I were just coming back from the store and I tripped over a piece of concrete." I explained for the fourth time. She was over reacting again. It was only a broken arm.

The ER doctor came back in with the results of the x-Ray. "Well the good news is, it's a clean cut so it won't hurt that much. Now Ms. Mayson, if you'll follow me, I'd like to discuss your payment options."

I watch as they get up and leave. My arm didn't even hurt that bad. Easily bored as I am, I decided to go for a walk. I wandering through the hall, I see that I was taken to the very back of the ER.

As I make my way down the hall red lights start to flash. Over the intercom they begin paging the trauma teams. Doctors and nurses ran by calling out instructions and information to each other. From what I heard, it was a flipped car with four people in critical condition.

I gradually became aware of the fact that, even though there were more people running back and forth, there was less sound. I looked around and saw EMT's rushing in the first victim. His voice was distorted and slow as he yelled at me to get out of the way. I jumped out of the way just in time. I watched as more beds came my way. The people in them were so cut up, they didn't even look like people. I saw one woman screaming but I didn't hear a sound.

Suddenly the sound of a song came down the hall to me. It was clear and sounded as if it was coming from right next to me. I turned and followed the sound in an effort to find its origin.

I go around the corner and find myself back in the room I started in. I don't know what, but something made me turn around and face the door. As I did, a girl walked past. She had dark brown hair which fell around her pale face in curls. With her was a little girl who looked like her and was scared to death. the older girl was the one singing. The song was calming. Almost like a lullaby.

As she walked away, the sound in the hospital came back.

****  
The next day, after school, I told Ryan and Alex about what had happened.

"Then she just walked away. Then all the sound came back like nothing ever happened." Alex and Ryan looked at me as if i was crazy. Which was completely expected.

Ryan rapped his knuckles against my forehead. "You probably hit your head harder than you thought." He joked.

"Yeah." Alex agreed. "You might have been having a hallucination. Or probably a side effect of the meds they gave you."

I thought it over. The two were probably right. Just as I was about to say so, the girl from last night walked past. I point her out. "There she is! That's her."

"Can you still hear?" Alex asked worried.

"Yeah."

"Then it was just the meds." Alex concluded.

I watched her as she walked closer. She was speaking with a teacher. Suddenly Ryan calls out a name.

"Christina."

The girl stopped, turned around, and smiled. "Hey Ryan." She continues on her way and goes into a classroom.

I look at Ryan in disbelief. "You know her?"

"Yeah." He said casually. "So do you. She has been in almost all of our classes since kindergarten."

"Really?" I don't remember seeing her a day in my life.

"Yeah. You used to make it a point of your day to make her cry." He continued.

"Everyday in fact." Alex said.

Was what the boys were saying true? On my way to Ryan's I wracked my brain trying to remember her. Nothing came up.

"Did she move away or something?" I asked. I was desperate for answers.

"No." Ryan said after thinking a bit. "It was weird though. You picked on her everyday, then all of a sudden stopped. Like you never knew her in the first place."

I shake my head as we walk up to Ryan's door. As he opens it, his German Shepherd Bobo ran out. The dog ran down the driveway and jumped on a passerby.

"Aaah!! Bobo!!"

Ryan and I run down to help. We get there and the person was on the ground laughing.

"Bobo! Bobo down. Down boy."

Bobo licks their face several more times and then gets off. It turned out to be Christina. Ryan goes over and helps her up.

"Sorry Chris. You know this mutt."

"It's OK." She said scratching his head. "He didn't hurt me."

She bends down and kisses the top of the dog's head. Then she sees me. "Hey Justin."

"Hey." We looked at each other unsure. As if we were expecting something to happen.


	2. Chapter 2

(Christina's POV)  
It was so strange. I haven't actually looked at him since the 4th grade. Not that I cared to after all he did to me.

"You live around here?" He asked trying to make conversation. I was about to say no, but Ryan answered for me.

"She's lived 3 doors down from me all our lives. Are you sure you don't remember her?"

I looked between the boys. He didn't? That was good right? I mean, then he can't be the one. I glance at my door and see my grandmother pretending to water the flowers. Nosy old people.

"Um I gotta go." I say excusing myself. "See you boys later."

I walk up to my door and see that my grandmother had "mysteriously" disappeared. I walk in and call for her. "Precious. I know you're here. And I know you heard the boys and I talking."

Precious walks out of the kitchen trying her hardest to look innocent. "Hey Chris. How was school?"

Oh no. I know that trick. "Why were you listening to the boys and I talk?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Good old, old people. She walked out of the room babbling about her day and I listened half-heartedly. My mind was spinning thinking about Justin.

My grandmother thinks that Justin is my seer (or soul mate if you will). I can't stand the child personally, but she says that he's the one. I eventually ditch the geezer and go get ready for work. I had the night shift in the pediatric ward again. By 5:30, I headed for the door.

"Precious! I going now."

She walks over to me. "Ok sweetie. If you see Landon tonight tell him to come by the house."

I nod and with that, I head out the door and down the street.


	3. Chapter 3

(Ryan's POV)  
I glanced out my window and saw Christina walk by on her way to work. We wave hello to each other and I turn my attention back to Justin who was complaining of pain.

"Just take the Motrin." I say in an effort to get him to shut up.

"I can't." He wined. "It hasn't been 6 hours yet." He rolled over and laid on his stomach still complaining.

"Try doing something to take your mind off the pain." I suggest.

"Like what?"

"Like homework." I toss him his backpack. "You have work to catch up on anyway." He looks at me and I hand him a text book.

"Do it!" He made a face and takes it from me. We spend the next few hours working on homework and the such. At about 7:30, my mom calls us down to dinner. We go down to the table and see that my mom had made some seafood and rice stir fry. It was pretty good. Once we finished, Justin took his meds and we went upstairs to play A video game.

"Don't stay up too late boys." My mom said from the doorway. "You still have school tomorrow."

We play for about an hour then Justin KO's on my bed. After I get him settled, I look at my clock.

"Only 10:00 Justin?" I say to his sleeping form. "You're slipping man."

I climb out on to my roof and look up at the stars. A few minutes pass and I begin to hear the sound of shoes hitting the pavement. I look down and see Christina walking home from work. I call out to her. "How now fairy? Whither wander you?

Christina looked startled for a moment but then smiled when she saw me. "Over hill, over dale." She responded. "Through brush, through brier. Through flood, through fire. I do wander everywhere. What are you doing up at this time?"

"I just couldn't sleep." I shrug. "Wanna keep me company?"

She makes her way over to the tree in my front yard and climbs it. Soon enough she is next to me on the roof. "So what is keeping you up?"

"Well for one, Justin's on my bed so there is no space." I get a laugh. "Just kidding. I just can't sleep. Busy mind I guess."

Her violet eyes look me over. Then she looks down at her watch. "Well it's almost 11 so I must be on my way. You need some sleep."

She reaches up and hugs me. Suddenly I feel something warm on my cheek.

"Night Ryan." She says quickly standing. "I'll see you tomorrow."

I watch as she jumps to the next roof and the one after that. Just before she makes the final jump I call to her. She stops and looks at me, and I draw a blank as to what I was going to say. She looked at me expectantly.

"Goodnight." Is all I manage to say.

I watch her jump to her roof. She looked up and waved as she climbed into her window. I became aware of a slow sleepiness creeping over me. I climb back into my room and before I know it, I'm asleep next to Justin.


	4. Chapter 4

Justin's POV  
I head down to the hospital so that I could get my cast removed. it had been fun with girls wanting to sign my cast and stuff. Anyway, I pull into the lot at around 6, park and go inside to start the removal process.

TWO HOURS LATER

"There you go." The dr said removing the last bit of cast. "Now be careful. Your arm is still weak so no horseplay."

I sign the release forms and head on my marry way. As I walk through the hall, I begin to hear singing. I recognized the voice but not the song. I follow the sound to a corner room at the end of the hall. When I get there, I hear the voices of people crying. I manage to slip into the back unnoticed. As I look around the room I see Christina standing by the side of the hospital bed. In it was a little boy of about 8 who was surrounded by medical equipment.

"Can you sing one more song Chris?" The little boy asked. His voice was terribly weak. "One more?"

Christina smiles and begins another song. I couldn't recognize a word but somehow the little boy did. I watch in silence as the little boy sang along.

Some of the family had moved to lean on the walls and I saw the dress Christina was wearing. It was a black lace dress and black accessories. She looked really good. I began to notice a somber mood filling the room.

After the song ended, Christina took the boy's hand. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah." He said after a moment. "But wait, what about my mom and dad? What will happen to them?"

I see a man and woman were both fighting back tears. They told their son that they would be ok. I look around the room and see that nearly everyone in there was almost of completely in tears.

Christina asked the little boy if there was anything he wanted to say before he left.

"I just want to say, mommy, daddy. I love you. I want you both to move on and not worry about me. I won't be sick any more."

At that point, everyone was crying. Even me. Christina had slipped into the back of the room silently. There was a low hum filling the room along with a slight chill. Looking around the room, I saw that the other family members had stopped crying. the expressions on their faces was sort of like a mix between sadness and consolation. I felt a warmth begin to go through me. I glance over at Christina and next to her a small, hazy mass of light began to form. I blink and rub my eyes to make sure I was seeing correctly. I look back and see that the light mass had turned into the little boy who from what I could see was still in his hospital gown. Without a word, Christina takes the little boy's hand and they leave the room. I silently slip out and follow her. She was heading for the exit. I called out to her. She didn't hear me but the little boy did. He turned to look at me and his face held a mixture of fear and calmness. Unusual for an eight year old. Christina kneels down to say something to him. He nods and they continue.

****

I follow her out into the night. She and Ray walk hand and hand into the small clump at the edge of the Hospital's parking lot. Ray turns and gives the hospital one last look. I duck behind a car hoping that he didn't see me. He and Christina turn and head into the trees. After they disappeared from view, I follow them. Once in the mini forest, I looked around hoping to find which way they went. I look slightly to my left and see a glowing light bobbing as it moved farther away. I pursue it. As I get closer, I could hear Christina's voice.

"We're almost there."

I stayed a few feet behind them as they walked. We ended up going for about a quarter of a mile then got to a clearing. Christina and the boy stepped into the center where there was a tree stump. I watch as she picked him and places him on it.

"Ray, she said to him. "This is where we meet my friend."

"Landon?"

"Good boy. You remembered." She ruffled his hair with a smile.

As they spoke, a light stream of light came out of the woods and flew around the tree stump. It deposited itself right next to Christina. When the light dulls, there was a man(?) standing next to her. He had, from what I could see, blonde hair and a good build. He also had a pair of wings. He wraps Christina in a hug

"Hello Christina."

"Hello Landon." She says hugging him back. "This is Raymond."

The angel gets down on his knees so as to be level with the little boy. "Hey Raymond. My name is Landon. I'm a friend of Christina's."

Ray looks up at him with wide eyes. "Are you an angel?"

"Yes, I am." He smiles. "You wanna know something cool?" Landon leans in as if he was telling the boy a secret. "Christina is an angel too."

My jaw dropped and so did Ray's. A sudden breeze blocked out whatever was said next but I saw Christina smile. A golden light similar to Landon's engulfs her. When it disappears, she is wearing a white dress and had a pair of wings protruding from her back. I rub my eyes to make sure that I wasn't seeing things.

There was only silence as Christina and Landon took Ray's hands. "You ready Ray?"

The little boy nods his head as the two Angels glide to either side of him. In an instant they were airborne and flying straight into the night sky.


	5. Chapter 5

Christina's POV  
Landon, Ray and I flew higher and higher through the clouds.

As we passed a flock of birds, Ray squeezed my hand. "Chrisy, I'm scared. What's going to happen to me?"

Landon heard him and answered for me. "You and I are going to a place where you won't be sick any more. And you'll be safe from any harm."

Ray looked back to me. "Aren't you coming too?"

"No." I sighed. "I have to stay here on earth and help other kids like I helped you."

His little round face scrunched up in confusion, then he relaxed. "Will I ever see you again?"

A large white door loomed into view.

I perched myself on a dark cloud. "This as far as I can go."

Ray turned on me surprised. "Why?"

"Because I'm still part human." I explain. "I can't go in there. But don't worry, Landon will take good care of you."

Ray looked from me to the door, Landon hovered flapping his golden wings silently.

"Go." I say simply. Ray hugs me with enough force to nearly knock me off the cloud. Don't get attached. Don't get attached. I hug him. "You be a good boy. OK?"

"I love you Chrisy."

Damn it! Wiping the tears from my eyes, I pull Ray off. "I love you too Raymond."

Landon flies over and takes Ray's hand once more. "Shall we?"

Ray nods. I watch on in silence as the boys approach the door. Slowly, it opened and they were bathed in a warm gold light. Ray looked back at me unsure. I manage one last smile as he and Landon go through.

(Back in the clearing)  
I land and let my wings disappear. I sit on the tree stump and wait for Landon to return. Soon enough, he swoops down and lands in front of me.

"Dear oh dear!" He laughed landing. "Was Christina Curing crying?"

I wiped my eyes and hit him. Landon tossed his head back and laughed. It was so contagious that I began to laugh as well. We finally stopped and Landon gets serious. "OK what is this about?"

"My grandmother wishes to speak with you." I tell him.

"Why?"

"I don't know. Probably has something to do with my Seer."

He regarded me in that big brother way of his that always made me mad. "Alright."

He leans in and kisses my forehead. "Now go home." I make a face at him as he lifts me off the stump and points me towards home.

I make my way back through the woods and step out. I make my way back in to the hospital to finish my shift.


	6. Chapter 6

(Ryan's POV)  
I woke up to the sound of fists pounding the front door. I look at the clock and see 3:45 flashing back at me. I get up and pull on a robe as I made my way downstairs. I look through the peep and see Justin.

"What are you doing?" I growled flinging the door open. "It's like 4 in the morning."

Justin was hunched over out of breath. "She... flew..wings. She had... Wings."

"What are you talking about?" I bring him inside and he sits down.

He starts trying to tell me what's wrong. "I had found her in a room and I followed her out to the woods and there was a little boy and he died and then there was a guy that was gold and had wings..."

"Wait!" He wasn't making any sense. "Who had wings?"

"Christina. Then the other guy." I look into his eyes and they were wild.

Taking him by the shoulders, I try to speak to him logically. "Justin, you were probably under some type of drug when they took off your cast. Christina does not have wings."

"Yes she does!" He nearly screamed. "I saw them. They were ..."He stopped suddenly and looked towards the window.

A dark shape moved on the other sound of the glass. The silence in the room was broken by the sound of a crow calling into the night.

"It was just a crow." I said more to myself than to him.

I look back at Justin who was suddenly asleep on the couch. Definitely the meds. I pull him to his feet and lead him to the guest room and help him into bed. I then go back to my room and try to get some more sleep. I mean we did have school later.

Later that day at school during lunch, Justin claimed to have no memory of the night before. "You mean, you din't remember anything?"

"For the third time, no. I just remember running to your house and falling asleep."

As we head off to class, Christina runs past us at top speed." Hey Chris. Where's the fire?

"What? Oh hey guys. No where. I just... I gotta go." With that she was gone.

I see her run out the front doors of the school towards home. I hope everything was ok. After school, Justin and I walked home as always.

"I hope everything is ok with Christina." I wondered out loud.

"Did she seem alright when she left?"

"A little distracted but other then that, yeah."

We continue on in silence as we make our way home. As we turn the corner, we see Christina outside her house talking to some guy. He was tall and dark skinned, definitely not from around here, and Christina was yelling at him.

"You can't just leave him here!" Ache yelled clearly red in the face. "He's your responsibility. He is about to change."

"I know that is why I am giving him to you." The stranger said seeming to enjoy causing Chris discomfort. As we walk over, she cocks her hand back to hit him but he catches it.

"Hey Chris." I say trying to break the tension. "Who is this?"

The stranger extends a hand and introduces himself. "Caleb Frank. Christina's cousin. Who are you boys?"

"I'm Ryan and this is my friend Justin." I say shaking his hand.

"Justin you say?" He asked surprised. "Justin Mayson?"

"Yeah. Do I know you?"

"Not really but I know you." Caleb stands with a suspicious smile and looks between Chris and Justin.

Chris cuts him a look of pure hatred. "I will murder you."


	7. Chapter 7

JUSTIN'S POV  
I looked from Caleb to Christina hoping for an explanation. Christina looked ready to kill Caleb. "Say one word and you won't even see the sunset."

I heard a quiet whispering and saw Caleb's face change. "I used to live out here."

Before he says anything else, a little boy walks up to us. "Sisi," He had the cutest little voice. "What is going on?"

"Nako Xarese. Isi aermi." Whatever Christina said made sense to the boy.

He suddenly looks over at Ryan and I. His skin was so pale, it was almost transparent and his eyes were so blue they were almost the color of the sky. Xarese had straight black hair that came down to his neck and curled a little at the end.

"Hey Xarese." I say extending my hand. "I'm Justin."

Xarese looked me dead in the eye. He said something to Chris in another language and she responded likewise. Then he turned around and left.

"Feisty little thing ain't he?" Ryan said hiding a laugh that earned him a punch in the shoulder.

"He can be." Christina smiled.

An awkward silence fell between us all.

"So Caleb, how long are you in town?"

He smiles at Christina and she glares back. "Until further notice." He gets a playful smirk in his face. As Christina raises her hand to slap him, their grandma calls them in. "See you boys later."


	8. Chapter 8

(Caleb's POV)

As soon as we got inside, Christina let me have it. "What the hell is wrong with you? Could you have been any more of a creep?"

"Who's fault is it that he didn't know?" I argued.

"Who's to say he had to?" She fired back.

"Both of you stop it." Precious intervened. "Christina, you know that he's right. You're both 15. I think it's time Justin knew the truth."

Christina throws herself on the couch and begins to cry. Precious looks at me and gestured for me to go handle it.

I make my way over to Christina, and put a hand on her shoulder. "C'mon Chris, don't cry. It's not that bad."

"Easy for you to say." She snapped. "You liked your seer."

Chrisy was right. I joined years ago, to a beautiful girl named Eliza but she had died in a demon uprising. A few moments of silence pass between us. After a while

Christina stopped crying and turned to look at me. "I'm sorry Caleb." She said realizing she hit a sour spot. "I didn't mean to bring up Lizzie."

"It's alright." I reassure her. "I know you're stressed out, especially after what I'm putting you through. Now you have to take care of Xarese ( mumbled ) and now me."

"Don't remind me.

I put my arm around her as we laugh. "So when are you going to tell him?" Him being Justin.

Her violet eyes looked me over. "Can I have to the end of the month?"

"Only if you have that long."


	9. Chapter 9

( Christina's POV )  
The next morning I woke up to light breathing next to me in bed. When I roll over, I see Xarese laying there watching me. "Good morning." I whisper to the child.

He whispers a greeting back and I ask if he was alright. Still no words but the slight shaking of his head told me he was fine. I roll over and look at my clock. "Well I've got to get ready for school." He nods and makes room for me to leave.

I get out of bed and go about my usual morning routine. When I go back to my room to check on Xarese and find him being lulled to sleep by Caleb.

"Morning." He says looking up at me.

"You're up early." I note.

Caleb's face broke into an unwanted smile. "Well I have to be on time for my first day of school now don't I?"

"Oh no!"

"Oh yes."

*****

On our way to school, I tried to explain to him that I did not need a babysitter.

"You're volatile." He reminded me. "I have to be near by at least."

"Well don't embarrass me." I sulk.

"No promises."

We get through the first part of the day smoothly and by lunch, Caleb had made some friends.

"I didn't know you had so many Howlies here." He said sitting near me during lunch.

( Howlies are people who had been turned into werewolves and been cured.)

"Yeah." I sigh. "About last year one of the hockey players got bitten and they went around infecting each other."

"Must have been a mess." He wondered out loud.

*****

After lunch was history which was my only class with Justin. For awhile I thought about what Precious and Caleb told me. I decided to test their theory. Justin, who didn't even know I had the class with him, was seated in the front and was trying to pay attention. I try to gently tap into his mentality.

"Justin." I call into his subconscience. "Justin, can you hear me?" After a few tries, I see him jump and look about.

When he calms down I try again. "Justin. If you can hear me, look up." When he does as I say, I go a little farther. I remove the camouflage of a tea dragon that was sitting on the edge of the teacher's desk.

"Look over at Mr. Natemon's desk and tell me what you see." He looks over and almost falls out of his chair in fear. The teacher sees him and sends him out.

As Justin gets his things, he looks back and sees me. His face was in readable as he left.

On the way home, I told Caleb what I did. "But the look he gave me... I don't know if it was fear or hatred."

"He probably thought that he fell asleep in class." He suggested.

"Let's hope so."

After getting home, and doing my homework, I got ready for work. On my way out, Xarese was behind me.

"Rezo Justin bazoff? ( Is Justin your seer?)"

I turn and look at him. The blue of his eyes seemed bright, as if he had been pondering this question all day.

"Niso. (No)" I say simply.

I tell him goodnight and kiss the top of his head and leave. I walked down the street alone and I'm suddenly pulled into a bush. Before I can scream, a hand covers my mouth.


	10. Chapter 10

(Justin's POV)  
After the history teacher sent me out of class, I went to find Ryan. I texted him and he met me outside of his class.

"So what's going on?" He asked closing the door behind himself.

"I think I saw Dragon on Jason's desk." I didn't know how else to say it. Ryan looked at me unmoved for a moment.

"Are you still taking your medication?" He asked after several minutes had passed.

"No I finished my last prescription last week." I informed him.

"Are you tired?"

"I don't think so.. I thought back to how I felt before leaving. Was I nodding off?  
"When did Christina get into my history class?" I asked changing the subject. "I don't remember ever seeing her there."

Ryan leaned against a set of lockers and looked me over. "She's been there the whole year. You switched in remember."

"There's something not right about her." I confess. "I'm going to find out what it is."

"Justin just let it go. It's only your imagination." He's always defending her.

"I saw a f***ing Dragon!" I screamed.

Ryan did nothing but I saw pink begin to dust his face. "I think you need to go home." He said after a few calming breaths. "Go sign yourself out I'll call you after school and maybe come by in the evening."

I couldn't believe it. My own best friend didn't believe me. I went home and laid in my room for a while thinking about everything that it happened since I started noticing Christina. Something wasn't right, and I was going to find out what it was. I knew Christina left for work at 9:30 and I waited in the bushes around the corner from her house. As she walked by, I reached out and grabbed her and pulled her into the bushes with me. Before she can scream, I put my hand over her mouth.

"I want you to tell me who, or what you are. If you promise not to scream I'll take my hand off your mouth. If you do scream, I will to do something you will not like."

I didn't really have anything to back up that threat. I was hoping she would fall for it anyway. Her violet eyes looked at me pleading. Something inside me, guilt probably, made me remove my hand. "I'm sorry Christina. I don't know what's gotten into me."

Without saying a word, she pulls out her phone and sends a message to somebody, and then she looks at me. "Tell me what's wrong."

All of a sudden, I began to tell her everything. From the night I broke my arm, to earlier that day class. The entire time, she just looked at me and silently listened.

"Justin, I have something I need to tell you."She got up and held a hand out to me. "Come with me." When I stood up, she reached forward and touched my cheek. I felt something cold when she moved it away. "Don't cry."

She lead me to her house and let me in. As she put her bag down, she called for her grandmother and cousin. She pulls out a chair for me and when I sit down, I realized that I was shaking. Christina put a hand on my shoulder and managed a small smile. The first to come into the sitting room was Caleb who was trailed by the little boy I had met yesterday.  
When his eyes fell on me a smile played on his lips for a moment then it disappeared. "Hey Justin. What brings you here?"

I weakly point at Christina.

"Not now Caleb." She chides. "Where's Precious?"

Precious walked in from the study. "I'm right here sweetie. What's wrong?" Her eyes fall on me and her face softens.

"I think it's time." Is all Christina says and the other two people nod. The little boy seemed to have wandered off.

"Time for what?" I asked looking between them. "Will someone please tell me what's going on."

Christina's grandmother pulled up a chair and sat in front of me. "Justin, I don't know how to say this, but, you're not normal."

I stared around at the solemn faces. "What do you mean not normal?"

"You're not human." She clarifies.

I look at Christina but she averts her eyes. Caleb just shrugs and shakes his head. "What?!? If I'm not human then what the hell am I?"

"You come from a race of angels." Caleb said finally moving from his spot by the door. "You can see things others can't."

"Like the dragon this afternoon." Christina added.

I feel my eyes go wide. This wasn't making any sense.

"No this is BS I don't believe any of it." I jumped out of my chair. "I have to get out of here." I get up, and make my way to the door.

As I reach the street, Christina comes to her balcony and calls my name.

"I know about your dream." She calls out to me. "I know you have a nightmare like you're falling out of the sky and you need to know that it's not a dream. You need to know what happened. You need to know I did that to you."

I look up at her and shake my head.

"Prove it to me."

She looked around inside shoulders in defeat. Suddenly, the tree next to began to move. I watched as the branches reach towards her and wrapped around your waist, then it picked her up and placed her on the street front of me.

"And there's more where that came from."


	11. Chapter 11

(Ryan's POV)  
I'm woken up by my doorbell ringing frantically. Without grabbing my robe, I make my way downstairs in my boxers and open the door. When I do, I see Christina and Justin standing on my doorstep.

"Ryan," Justin said in ceremoniously. "Put on some clothes. We're going out."

"Why? What's going on?" They both looked serious.

Christina looked at me with slight desperation in her eyes. "No time to explain. Just get dressed."

I do as instructed, and meet the two downstairs. Silently, we all head into the night.

"So where we going?" I asked as we rounded the corner of the street.

"We have some things to discuss." Christina answered without looking at me.

We walk on in silence for quite some time and I walk next to Justin and try to get him to talk to me.

"What's going on?" I ask. "Is this about what happened today? Will somebody please tell me something."

Christina and turns around looks at me. "Ryan, do you believe in magic?"

That was a strange question. "Not particularly. Why?"

She turned and continued walking. "Now would be a good time to start."

I didn't understand what she meant. We walked on in silence for a few more minutes then we stopped in front of an empty lot.

Christina turned to Justin first. "Justin, what do you see?"

Justin looked around unimpressed. "I see a building."

"What!" I interrupt. "There is nothing there! Is some type of joke?"

I was getting scared. I needed explanations and I needed them fast. Christina walked up to me looked me in the eyes. Even amidst all the confusion, I couldn't help but notice how beautiful her eyes looked in the moonlight. She took my hand, and I felt a pinch. Suddenly, a rundown building stood in front of us.

"What is this place?" I ask looking at the newly materialized structure.

"This is Fragnot." She explained. "A place where non-humans can meet and shed their human disguises and be free of judgment."

She turned from me and goes and knocks on the heavy wooden door. In moments, a gruff voice called out. "What you want?"

"We wish to enter." She said authoritatively.

I notice a pair of eyes look her up and down. The voice scoffed. "Go little girl, and take her friends with you. This isn't a place for you."

He shines a light into Christina's face and suddenly I see fear cross his eyes. "My Ladyship. I didn't realize it was you. Please come in."

The door opens and the sound of a party drifted out to us.

"Stay close and don't talk to anyone." Christina turns and leads the way into the fray followed closely by Justin and I. Once inside, we saw that the doorkeeper was a tall and fully built man. As intimidating as he was though, he still looked frightened by Christina.

"Your Grace." He pleaded. "Please have mercy. Your servant could not see into the dark for he is old and his eyes have lost their sharpness."

I looked at Chrisy. Her eyes seemed to be shining brighter then moments ago.

"Go." Was her simple reply. "All is forgiven."

The man backed away bowing repeatedly. Justin grabbed Chris's arm. "What was that?"

She again said nothing as she lead us through the crowd. As we made our way through, I tried to look at the faces surrounding me. I saw people that looked like trees conversing with pale faced strangers. Some covered in feathers and others with brightly colored skin. All stopped to stare as we passed, then broke into whispers. I loosely grab the back of Christina's coat and keep moving. She leads us to a sectioned off room that had a table and several regal looking chairs. She takes one and motions for us to take the ones across from her.

"So what is this about?"


	12. Chapter 12

(Overview)  
Christina took a breath and began. "Ryan, you're here because Justin wants you here.That means that you will have to do and go through everything he does."

"I want you to explain to explain to me and Ryan what is going on." Justin interrupted.

Christina looked around and sighed. "Justin is a Seer." She began. "That means that he is able to see the things around us naturally."

Ryan looked between them. "Things like what?"

"Vampires, trolls, dragons, etc." She listed.

The trio sat in silence as the boys thought. Justin spoke up first. "If I am a seer, then what is Ryan?"

Christina looked to Ryan. "Ryan is a pure blooded human."

"So he's nothing special?"

"On the contrary." She clarified. "His blood is one of the most powerful things on this planet. And he's very rare."

Ryan groaned aloud. "And here I was thinking I was normal."

"You are an Original, Ryan." She continued. "Your power is second only to mine. Your power however lies in your blood. You can't cast a spell or conjure spirits by hand, but your blood can be used in potions that could destroy the world."

"So I am pretty powerful then?"

"Very."

The trio sits in silence. Justin turned to Christina. "So what can you do?"

"Anything." She replied.

"I don't believe you." He shot back.

"You don't have to." She shrugged. "You just have to understand, that what I can do, can sometimes mean life or death for the both of us. Or three of us now."

Christina's face was serious but her voice remained almost diplomatic. Justin got up and began to walk around the room watching Christina out of the corner of his eye. "So you say you can do anything?" He asked still circling.

"You name it, and I'll do it."

Just picks up a candle from a nearby table, and places it on the table in front of Christina.

"Light it." He was challenging her. Without taking her eyes off of him, Christina lights candle on the table. Ryan watches as a candle bursts into flame.

"Whoa!" He exclaimed jumping back. "How did you do that?"

"Like I said Ryan," She kept her voice even. "Now is a good time to believe in magic."

Justin wasn't buying it. "How do we know there's no switch under the light or something?"

"You put it down." She reminded him.

"I still don't believe you." Justin's brown eyes glimmered in the candle light. "Do something else."

"I already have."

Justin looked confused, and she gestured to the candle flame. It had been replaced with water but it still burned as if there was nothing wrong with it. Seeing this, Ryan's finger over the wick. As he pulled his hand back, water dripped off his finger. "It's real water." He said looking at his friend.

"Well of course it is." Christina feigned hurt. "What did you expect it to be?"

Justin, not one to be out done, waked over to Christina, and turned her chair to face him. "Show me something surprising."

Christina looked up at him and smiled. She suddenly reached out and slapped him across the face. When Justin turned back, his face was full of wrinkles. When he spoke again his voice was aged as well. "What have you done to me?!?" He screamed pulling at the new folds of skin.

"Surprised you like you asked." Christina's face had a smile but her violet eyes held nothing but venom.

"Okay, okay! I believe you. Please, change me back." Justin begged.

Christina gently placed a hand on his cheek and his youth returned. She then got up grabbed her coat and handed Justin his. She turned to Ryan who had been silently and thoughtfully observing the whole ordeal. "So now you both know what you're in for." She said as she headed for the door. "From here on out you and Ryan will be trained and educated according to the ways of Angels, Seers, and all other magical folks. Now come on, let's go home."

With Christina leading the way, the trio made their way home. Before he went inside, Ryan turned and looked at Christina.

"So what is all this?" He asked still trying to piece everything together. "This is a dream I'm going to wake up from, or is this real life?"

Christina sighed and took his hand. "This is going to be your life now. It's not going to be easy and it's going to get scary. But, I'll try to help you as much as I can."

Ryan speechlessly stared at her. Christina reached up and kissed his cheek.

"Good night Ryan. Get some sleep, training starts tomorrow."


	13. Chapter 13

(Christina's POV)  
When I got home I explained everything to Caleb and Precious.

"So he is the one?" Precious asked after my narrative.

"I guess so." I sighed stretching out on the couch. "But he's pulled Ryan into it, so now it's double the work."

Caleb mumbled some thing under his breath and I made a face at him and went to get ready for bed. Just before I turned out my light, I heard my door open slightly. Xarese peaked his head around the corner.

"Alooka Xarese. (hello Xarese)" I called to him in Aquadian.

"Alooka Christina." He replied softly. I opened my arms inviting him to come sit with me. A soft smile graced his round face as he pattered over to me and hopped into my bed. After he made himself comfortable, (i.e. He buried himself in my dovet so all I could see were his bright blue eyes.) Xarese whispered to me. "Justin, lawe kali? (Justin, is he human?)"

I sigh and look at him. "Niso. Ka rezo bazoff. Ka rezo mela bazoff. ( no. He is a seer. He is my seer.)"

"And Ryan?" He looked up at me almost hopefully.

"Him too." I smile down to him.

Xarese smiles at me sweetly. "Mela sefa wela laven. (I like them)"

"Good." I said climbing up next to him. "Because we are stuck with them now."

He smiles at me again and curls up under my covers.

*****  
The next morning I woke up to Xarese snuggled into the crook of my arm. As I examined the sleeping prince next to me, I noticed three silvery strands of hair. He had begun to change.

I slipped out from under him and made my way to Caleb's room. Without knocking, I barged in and instantly regretted it. Caleb had just gotten out of the shower and was about to put his underwear on. When I walked in he stopped and posed.

"Good morning." He smiled unabashed. "See something you like?"

I averted my eyes. "Hey Caleb, how old is Xarese?"

Caleb shrugged and thought. "I don't know. 9 maybe 10. Why?"

I threw a near by shirt at him. "You haven't been keeping track?!"

"No." He dodged my attack. "Why? What's going on?"

"His hair is turning gray." I leaned against his doorframe as he continued getting dressed.

"Already?" He watched me through the mirror as he checked his outfit.

"Yes."

Ugh! THIS is why he irritates me. I leave his room and go get ready for school. Downstairs, I found Precious making our lunches.

"Morning." I sighed sliding into a chair. "Xarese is beginning to change."

She almost drops the butter knife she was holding and looked at me. "What! Already?"

I nod. "His hair is beginning to go grey. We need to start making preparations."

"Isn't that Caleb's job?" She asked dropping a sandwich into a lunch bag.

"We both know how this will end if we leave it up to him." I grab my lunch and head off to school. Along the way I run into Ryan. As we walk on to campus, Justin joined us. We exchange pleasantries then I split off and tell them I'd meet up with them at lunch. Both boys nodded ok and I left.

Once out of sight of the boys, I made my way to the old hockey gym and summoned Landon. Within moments, a small breeze came into the room followed by the smell of cinnamon apples. The breeze blew itself into a vortex and soon Landon was standing in front of me.

"You rang?" I rush him and wrap him in a hug. "Hey to you too kiddo."

"You won't believe how much trouble I'm in." I tell him as I let go.

"You? Trouble? I don't believe it."

"Shut up. But seriously, we have a predicament. The first problem is with my Seer."

"Congratulations on finding him."

"Thanks but no thanks. I can't stand him and he refused to train with out his best friend and that brings me to my second problem. The friend is an Original. Pure Blood through and through. I'm worried that he might be too powerful."

Landon is silent as he thinks over what I told him. "I think I can get some things made that could preserve his extra powers and maybe transfer some of it to the other boy. What are their names by the way?"

I tell him and he pulls out a little note book and writes their names in it. "Justin and Ryan. Ok their bloodlines are intertwined so all I need is a little bit of blood from the two of them."

"You're not going to hurt them are you?"

"Not permanently." He smiles mischievously and I hit him on the shoulder. He dodges my other hits. "So is there other predicaments?"

"Oh, well Caleb showed up about two weeks ago with Xarese, the Aquadian prince, and the boy is beginning to change."

"And you need me to send word to King Ozuzi and Queen Karifa, and tell them the prince is on his way home?" He finished. "Is there anything else you needed?"

"No. I think that's it."

With a simple salute, Landon burst into a billion little pieces, signifying his departure. Where he stood was a note that said "Get to class." I roll my eyes as the paper follows his example and I am left with gold dust in my hand.


	14. Chapter 14

(Caleb's POV)  
After Christina left, I made my way down to the kitchen. "Hey Precious." I sighed slumping into a chair.

"Hey sweetie." She smiled kissing the top of my head. "You going to school today?"

"I guess." I shrugged. I was in one of my moods again. When you are immortal it's easier for you to fall into ruts and not want to do anything. Especially when it's your dead wife's birthday.

Precious looks at my face and knows instantly what is wrong. "You know what? Why don't you go and spend the day as you wish. I'll call the school with something."

She kisses the top of my head and sends me off. Before I leave, I look in on Xarese. Sure enough there was a silver streak going through his hair. I'm not ready for this. I kiss the top of his head and let myself out.

Knowing I had to avoid students, I made my way over to Fragnot's. After paying my fee and entering, I chose a seat in the back out of anyone's line of vision. Blending into the darkness, I casually listened to people's conversations. Throughout a better part of the morning, there was only gossip about what was hot and not but suddenly a pair of voices caught my attention.

"So he has returned?" The voice sounded terrified.

"Yes." A second voice, calmed than the first answered.

"Are you sure of this Elmer?" The first voice spoke again.

Elmer paused for a moment. "Yes. I saw him myself."

"Has he found the Princess?"

"No. She is still safe Preston. But I don't know for how much longer."

Preston let out a shaky sigh. "She needs to join soon. Maybe not the entire ceremony but she must join. It is the only way Christina will be safe." I hear the clatter of coins on wood. "Liam can't find her. He'll destroy us all."

This wasn't good. With Liam Vaultspawn being nearby, and Christina being so vulnerable something big was going to happen and it might not be good. I grabbed my coat and made my way to the high school to find Chris. When I get there, lunch had just begun, so I hopped the fence and made my way to her usual table. Just as she sits down, the boys (Justin and Ryan) crowd her. I walk up to them and greet everyone cheerfully. I get mixed responses. Still smiling I pull Christina over to a vacant table and we sit.

"Liam is looking for you." I say plainly. "And he is nearby."

Her face falls into an image of fear. "Does he know anything?"

"I don't know. I overheard some men talking in Fragnot's. Do you want to tell the boys?"

She takes a moment to collect herself then answers. "No. Don't tell them anything just yet. I already have a lesson planned today. Go and tell Precious. She'll know what to do."

I give her a hug that she obviously needed then disappeared.


	15. Chapter 15

(Justin's POV)  
After Caleb left, Christina came back to the table looking a little shaken.

"Everything alright?" I asked pulling her out of whatever she had been thinking of.

"Oh I'm fine." She tried to smile. "But back to what we were talking about... What were we talking about?"

Ryan gave her a once over. "Aquadians."

"Right, Aquadians. When you, Justin and Alex get to my house this afternoon, I want you both to have at least a guess as to what an Aquadian is."

What! How were we supposed to do that? Ryan asks and Christina smiles. "Use your brains. Think about it a little. It's simpler than you think." The bell rings and she gathers her things. "See you boys at 4."

With that, she turns and heads off to her class. Ryan and I begin making our way to our auto class. "So what do you think an Aquadian is?" He asked as we stopped by his locker.

I shake my head and laugh as we leave. After school me, Alex, and Ryan go to Christina's house.

"So why am I here?" Alex asked for the fifth time.

"Christina wants to meet you for something." Ryan explained for the sixth time.

"Don't listen to Ryan." I joked. "She won't tell us why you're here. It's probably to give you a bath. You smell like hot butt crack in the middle of July."

Alex laughed at that. "I wouldn't mind as long as she does the scrubbing. She's kinda hot."

"Says the guy who gets turned on by food."

We get to the house with ten minutes to spare. Before we even knock, the door opens and the little boy Ryan and I met a few days ago was standing there smiling at us.

"Alooka Anookos." He said cheerfully. Ryan and I looked at each other confused but Alex seemed unfazed by it.

"San ka?" The boy spoke again. "Odon rezo yolano name?"

"I'm Alex. Who are you?"

"Cumate-Ka Xarese."

Xarese! That was his name. I see Alex suddenly bow. "In that case, good afternoon your Highness."

"What's going on?" Ryan finally asked.

None of us noticed Christina standing in the corner so when she stepped forward, it scared us a bit.(ok alot) "This is part of the lesson. Seeing as you have met Xarese, the fun can begin. Follow me."

Christina pivots on her heel and Xarese is the first to go after her but he stops and grabs our hands and pulls us after her.

"Ashtka!"

We follow Christina down to what I expected to be the basement and we are all surprised to find an entire library, as in three stories, instead of the regular dingy 200x200 sq. ft room. She leads us to a table in the center of the room and we boys take seats while Xarese climbs onto the table and sits cross legged.

"So did you boys do as I told you to do?" Ryan and I nod. She then went over to a black board. "So Ryan, what do you think an Aquadian is?"

Ryan pulled out a scrap of paper that he had written his ideas on. "Well, I think it is something that has to do with water."

"Ok, Justin?"

"I think it is a water animal or something."

Xarese begins to giggle uncontrollably. Christina gives him a look but he keeps laughing. Soon she just smiles and shakes her head. "Well you both are partially right. Alex, what do you think an Aquadian is?"

Alex looked around uncomfortable with being the center of attention. "Ummm. Is it a type of people?"

As soon as he answers, Xarese jumps into his lap laughing. "I knew it! I knew it! You are an Aquadian!"

"Wait. I am a what?" Alex asked.

Christina turns the chalkboard around, we see that it is covered in writing. "Alex is right. The Aquadians are a race of people that live in the water."

"Like mermaids?"

"Kinda. But they are not like the ones you see in movies. They are almost like dolphins in color and skin texture, but humanoid in the face."

"But how am I an Aquadian?" Alex asked clearly more concerned about his new identity.

"You Alex are called a lost Aquadian. Ahool Aquodi.. She told him calmly. "You are the product of an interracial pairing."

"Where did it start? Does it mean that I'm weird? How were you able to tell?"

Christina put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "You aren't any different then Ryan and Justin, Alex. Your grandmother was a full blooded Aquadian and when she married your grandfather, your family line started there."

"How could you tell though?"

Christina explained to him and to us that the color of his eyes is what gave him away. "Only Aquadians and their descendants share that color. Look at Xarese's eyes. They are the same color as yours."

We all look at their eyes. It was true. They were the same bright sapphire blue.

"Xarese is a full blood Aquadian while you are only half." She continued. "Aquadian blood doesn't mix in. Once you have half you will always have half. It doesn't do much. But you can hold your breath underwater longer than most people."

That explains how he won every time we played Aquaman. I see Christina go and pick up two books from the ground and hand them to Ryan and I. "These are Aquadian dictionaries. One of the jobs of an angel and seer is to communicate between the different races."

I flipped through the book as soon as I got it. Mostly pictures and a few words for each. Can't be too hard of a language. I'm bought out of my thoughts by Ryan asking how old Xarese was.

"He is about 11,12 years old. They age slowly which is partially why Alex was so short growing up."

"Hey! I'm not short!"

We all laugh at his outburst and soon he was laughing too. We spent a better part of the evening down in the library learning what there was to know about the Aquadians and their way of life.

While Christina was talking to us about something, what looked like a floating bubble came down from the ceiling. When it popped, we heard Christina's grandmother's voice.

"Alright kids. That's enough learning for today. Dinner is ready, so wash up and come eat."

Christina takes the sleeping Xarese from Alex and we all make our way up the stairs.

"So is this going to be a daily thing?" Ryan asked adjusting his backpack.

"No, no, no. This will be for every time you learn about a new creature or subject."

When we get back upstairs, Christina and Ryan split off so she could put Xarese to bed.


	16. Chapter 16

(Ryan's POV)  
Chrisy and I made our way upstairs and to one of the bedrooms. When the door opens, I see school books open on the ground.

"Is this his room?" I asked surprised by the decor.

Chris laughed a little. "Oh no this is mine. He just likes to sleep in here."

I figured it was because of the deep blue of her walls. Within moments she had him dressed for bed and covered. After kissing the top of his head, we go into the hall.

"You know, if I didn't know better I would think that you both are related." Chris smiles and begins to head downstairs.

I knew that the graying of his hair meant that he would be changing soon. "So how much time does he have?"

"I don't know." She sighed. "It varies but I know that it is going to be soon." I saw her eyes glowing a plum color in the dim light.

"Do your eyes change color?"

"Yeah. The darker they are, the more dangerous the situation."

"So they go from lavender to dark purple?" She nods and looks up at me and they were dark. "So are we in danger now?"

"You, no. Me, yes. I'm in a constant danger simply because of who and what I am."

Her eyes go distant for a moment. I don't know what compelled me to do it, but I kissed the top of her head and looked down at her. "Our job is it keep you safe. At least that's the vibe I'm getting."

She smiles and we continue down the stairs. After dinner, we all stood on the porch. Alex was the first to go home, and that left Justin, Christina, and I looking in to the darkness.

"How do you guys feel about everything?" Chris asked after Alex had turned the corner.

Justin scratched his head. "I don't know. I mean it's cool and everything, but I don't really know. I wish there was more... I don't. Action maybe."

Christina smiles and sits on her porch swing. "I'm glad you feel that way. You boys will be learning combat skills soon and I hope you passed PE."

We prod for more answers but she just smiles. "Just meet me in the old boys hockey gym tomorrow night at 7. If you're late, you'll regret it. Good night boys."

She gets up and gives us each a kiss on the cheek and goes back inside. I turn and look at Justin. Not knowing what'll see to do, we do a bro fist and part ways.


	17. Chapter 17

(Landon's POV)  
When I got back to the Abovelands, I went straight for the metal workers. There I met up with Tobias, the head worker.

"And this is for who?" He asked reviewing my order.

"I told you. The Princess needs them for her seers. One is an Original and the other is her pre-chosen. We need something that will store the power of the Original and transfer the power to the Pre-Chosen."

Tobias looked at me with bright green eyes and begins to laugh. "If I didn't know the Princess, I would say that this was one of your tricks."

"Can you just tell me what you need?" Dealing with him is exhausting. His eyes glint in the mischief as he looks away. "If you don't do this, I'm gonna tell mother that you refuse to be helpful."

Did I forget to say he was my older brother? Tobias smiles at me.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Would you like me to tell the Princess instead?"

We have a small battle of wills and he looks away first. "They must become blood brothers. Perform the ceremony, and then they will be able to flow their energies between each other."

"You couldn't have just come out and said that." His eyes glow for a moment and I take that as a sign that I should leave. "I'm still telling mom." I provoke.

I run as he throws a bowl at me.


	18. Chapter 18

(Overview)  
Later that night, Christina and Caleb looked in on the sleeping Xarese.

"So how much longer do we have?" Caleb asked sipping at a drink in his hand.

"Well you, have about 4 months left. I've already gotten a place ready for him. We'll have to head out soon though. I can tell his transition is going to be painful."

Caleb thought back to his transformation. A shudder passes through him involuntarily. "I still don't remember then covering this in school."

"They did, you were just always asleep." She teased.

"If they did, then you must of gotten a perfect score. Didn't you?"

"Of course I did. I had to."

There is only silence as they watch a few more of Xarese's hairs turn gray. Christina leans against Caleb and sighs. "So is he really out there? Is Liam really looking for me?"

"That's what people are saying. Do you think he'll find you before the joining?"

"I don't know." She sighed. "I hope not. And if he does, I hope it's after we return Xarese."

There is silence between them for awhile. Caleb speaks first. "So when do we leave? And where we going?"

"There is a lakeside house. I'm planning that we go out there within the next two weeks. We're going to have to take the boys as well. I don't know how this is all going to work."

"Your plans always work in the end." He smiled finishing his drink. "Don't worry."  
Caleb stretched and let out a rather obnoxious yawn. "Well, good night. We have school in the morning."

*****

The next day the group met after school.

"Now remember to be back here by 7 o'clock. Make sure nobody follows you." Christina reminded them for the third time.

Justin idly checked his watch. "Is it really that serious?"

"If you value your safety." Caleb commented. All parties part ways and go about their business. At about 6:30 that evening, Caleb and Christina got to the old gym and began to set up for training.

"So is Landon bringing their things tonight?" Caleb asked setting his stuff down.

Christina tied up her hair. "I don't know. I haven't seen him since I put in the request for the staffs."

The two begin to stretch and Caleb gets a playful look on his face. Christina catches it. "What?"

"Nothing."

"I know that face. That is not your "nothing" face."

Caleb gets up and picks up a training rod. "Remember those days in school, when we had combat training?"

Christina grabbed one as well. "And I beat your ass almost every time we were paired up together."

Caleb made a face. "That's not how I remember it."

"Probably because of all the times I hit you in the head."

He gets into a fighting stance. "How bout a rematch? You know, to settle this."

"Have you renewed your insurance?"

Caleb charges at her and she jumps out of the way. Before she can hit him though, he knocks her feet out from under her. While she's on the floor, he tries to hit her again, this time aiming for her face. Christina blocks him and manages to push him back so she could get up.

Caleb stops and circles her. "Bringing back memories yet?"

"A few."

She runs at Caleb and tries to jump on to his shoulders but he blocks her with his training rod and she falls backwards. Caleb quickly kicks Christina's rod away from her and points the end of his at the center of her neck.

Both Caleb and Christina stare at each other while they catch their breath. Suddenly they erupt into laughter. "You've gone soft kid." Caleb said helping her up.

"I was just trying not to embarrass you in front of the boys."

Caleb turns and sees Justin and Ryan staring at them. "Hello boys. You're right on time."


	19. Chapter 19

(Christina's POV)  
I had noticed the boys walk in while Caleb and I were fighting.(That's probably why I lost.)

Justin began applauding. "That was amazing! When will we be able to do that?"

Caleb put the rods away" When you get to advanced combat training."

"You make it sound like we're joining the army." Ryan said checking his shoes.

"Well, you kinda are. We never know when the demons will wage war against the angels so we do our best to be ready."

The boys nod in understanding as we begin their first night of training. By the time we finish, it was after ten. Caleb somehow still had energy. "Anyone up for Fragnot's?"

"No. We have school tomorrow." I remind him. "Besides, I think you hit Justin a bit too hard."

We all look over and see Justin laying on the floor still looking a little dazed.

"Aww, you kids are no fun." He pouted. "Back in my day, we could get hit with a fifth level block spell and still have drinks after."

"Well, this isn't back in your day." I fired back. "This is now. And now, we have to go home because we have school in the morning. And this time so do you."

Amidst Caleb's protest, I pick up Justin and we all begin to head home. "Hey Ryan, is Justin sleeping at your house tonight?"

"I don't know, but he might as well. I don't think anyone is at his house."

Caleb and I dropped the boys and Ryan's and then turn in for the night. When I got up to my room, I noticed a small golden envelope laying on my pillow. I open it and a gold paper with silver writing on it.

 

To Her Royal Highness, Princess Christina,

In response to the task of which you have asked of me, I will tell you this, your companions must perform the ritual of brotherhood. Only once that is completed, my I send to you your instruments of power. My apologies.

Your angelic companion,  
Landon

The letter ended with the flourish of a signature I've come to recognize as his. The letter, as expected, turned to gold ash but then unexpectedly reformed itself into a new note.

 

Christina,  
Tobias is being a bit childish and says this is what you need to do. Contact me as soon as you complete the ritual.

P.S: Sorry about the over formality of the letter. I have a feeling I am being watched. There is bad energy around your house. Be careful.  
Yours,  
Landon

I let the gold ash fall between my fingers. Who would be watching Landon this is nothing out of the ordinary for his job. I go to bed thinking of what could be watching us and why.

A few hours later, I woke up to a body climbing into my bed. I roll over and see Xarese trying to pull the covers over himself. "Xarese?" I whisper to him. "You ok?"

He looked at me and nodded silently.

"Are you sure?"

He was quiet for a moment. "Someone is coming." He said quietly. "Someone that even you are afraid of."

Oh no. Liam getting closer and the boys were not even close to prepared for what he might do. I wrap Xarese in a hug and stroke his now completely silver hair.

"Don't worry. I'll be alright. Now sleep."

On our way to school the next morning, I told Caleb what had happened.

"Did he say who it was?"

I shook my head. "I don't think he's old enough to see details yet but he said that it is someone even I am afraid of. And even Landon said said something about bad energy around the house."

There is silence as Caleb processes what he just heard. "When is the next full moon?"

"Next weekend. Why?"

"They'll do the brotherhood ritual then. The boys need to start learning some protective spells. Not only for you but for themselves."


	20. Chapter 20

(Justin's POV)  
Over the next week Christina taught us (Ryan and I) some combative moves. When Friday night training rolled around, things changed. When Ryan and I got down to the gym, Caleb and Christina were standing in the center of the room with two rods at their sides.

"Hey Christina." I greeted her. "What's going on?"

"There will be no training today boys." Caleb began. "For tonight, my little dumpling, you and Ryan are going to become blood brothers."

Ryan and I look between the two of them confused and slightly scared. It was never good when there was a change of plans. Christina turned to Ryan. "Ryan, Remember how I told you that you have powerful blood?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, this ritual will make it possible for you and Justin to share power." The look on my face gave away the fact I didn't understand what was going on. "Look, it's gonna be a simple process. The worst thing about it is that you have to cut your finger."

"What do you mean cut my finger?" I demanded. "Why would I have to do that?"

Caleb tried to calm me. "It's just part of the ritual Justin. Christina and I will draw the altar on the ground. After that, you and Ryan just follow what we say. It's easy."

Ryan and I looked at each other uncertainly. Sounds simple but dangerous at the same time.

"So how simple, is simple?"

"Very simple actually." Caleb smiled. Not a good sign. "Christina and I will draw the altar, then you you boys will follow our instructions. Just like I said."

He gives the two of us a smile and he and Christina set to work. I pull Ryan over to the side. "Do you really think we should do this?" I whisper to him.

"I don't know. I don't think we've covered this in the lessons yet. And besides, do we even have a choice?"

He was probably right. Ryan pulls the codex that Christina gave us out of his bag. He flips through the pages and tries to find something on the brotherhood ritual. Soon he find something and shows it to me.

"Here, look. It says will be surrounded by the four elements, and then cut our fingers and shake hands or something and then, boom! We're blood brothers."

"It just seems too easy. Why is it happening now? Shouldn't this be happening when we are better trained?"

"There must be a reason. She'll have to talk eventually. I think for now we should just go along with it."

His green eyes shined in a way that reassured me. "Well, I'm in if you're in."

For the next hour and a half, Ryan and I watched as Caleb and Christina drew mirrored diagrams on the floor with their rods. They each drew seven circles, four of which connected to the one in the center. Then they each set up five silver basins. One in the center circle and the other four in each of the connecting ones. Next I saw Caleb draw a circle between both diagrams and set up a gold basin there. Finally, Christina walked over to us holding two silver chalices with a purple, blue liquid inside.

"You both need to drink this." She said simply. "All of it."

"What will it do?" Ryan asked eyeing the solution.

"It opens you up to your full abilities. Temporarily of course, but long enough for you to complete the ritual." She looks between the two of us and sighs. "I can't explain everything right now. But I will. I promise. Now hurry up, we don't have much time."

Ryan and I touch glasses and down the fluid. Almost instantly I felt something in my mind pop open. I look over at Ryan and he seemed to have felt the same.

Christina took the cups back. "It will take a second for the serum to fully kick in so while we wait, I'll explain to you what is going to happen."

She tells us that we will have to put each element in the four outlying bowls by using the power we just acquired. Then, in the center bowl we were to have our fingers cut by either Caleb or herself and then we would let the blood drip into the bowl. Finally, the blood from those bowls would be poured into the gold basin and Ryan and I would shake hands. All the while, Christina and Caleb were to be chanting. "Sound simple enough?"

We nod in enthusiastically.

Caleb then calls to us from inside his circle. "Then let's get started. Ryan, this way if you please."

We separate and Christina places me in front of one of the bowls. She names each bowl going clockwise from me. "Fire. Earth. Water. Air. Using the energy you now have, you must fill each bowl with an element."

"You never showed us how to do this type of stuff." Ryan called out.

"Yeah. We haven't done any magic at all."

"I know and I'm sorry. After tonight there will be more of that. I promise. But, for this to work, you must clear your minds and think only of the element you are trying to produce. And guys, just relax. The elements will tell you what to do."

I look over at Ryan who was positioned in front of the water bowl. "Ready when you are." Ryan nods and we begin.


	21. Chapter 21

(Liam's POV)  
I made sure to stick to the shadows as I made my way inside. There were rumors of an Original becoming a Seer, but I had to be sure. Earth time is different from Helsian time but the human timecounter I had acquired from some elderly person told me it was 7:15 dark time.

I carefully made my way up the side of the building and found a crawl space just big enough for a rat. Without a second thought, I shrink myself to the appropriate size and get inside. Once back at my normal size, I found a dark corner overlooking the entire lower level. I watched as Caleb and Christina walked around making the preparations for the ritual. The two boys that were to become brothers were off in the corner talking to each other. The timecounter made a full rotation before the ritual finally started. The boys were placed in front of the first bowl and began.

It didn't take long to find out who the Original was. The boy with green eyes conjured a flame sphere so massive I felt the heat even up where I was. The other boy made a sizable sphere but it was nothing in comparison.

Both boys struggled with the earth portion as expected (no one finds that easy) and both were about equal with the water, but the air element proved to be the trickiest. Although the Original had the biggest wind storm, the Seer boy was better able to control his. Finally came the last part. Both of them let out a cry of pain as their blood began to flow out of them.

After enough was collected into the bowls, both were taken to the center circle to be mixed together in the golden basin. Then something unexpected happened. As both boys dipped their hands into the basin, it turned white. I saw Christina whisper some words of reassurance and the boys completed the ritual.

I decided not to linger and made my way back outside. I checked the timecounter and the long stick was pointing at the 9, whatever that meant. I tossed the loathsome contraption into the bushes as I climbed into my car. Just before I could shut the door, a crow flew in and turned into a young lady sitting next to me. Even though her face was covered, I still saw a pair of red lips turning up into a smirk.

"Keep an eye on them." I ordered. "Especially the seer and his friend."

Without a word there was a nod and she turned back into a bird, and flew out.


	22. Chapter 22

(Landon's POV)  
A few days after the completion of the ritual, Tobias finished their staffs.

"Don't break them." He said handing them to me. "The staffs are made in a special way so tell the Princess that if they break, I must be notified immediately. Got it?"

"Yes, yes. Can I go now?"

Toby looked at the two staffs in my hands as if they were his children. "Go. And be careful."

Part of me wanted to pretend to drop them just to see his face but I knew that I wouldn't have time for the fight that would have followed.

I left the Abovelands and made my way down to earth. I decided to go to see Christina and the boys at school. It was snow time on earth did I could feel the cold pressing around me. When the final bell rings, I lean against a fence and wait. After a few minutes (and several flirtatious stares,) the gang walked out. Caleb was the first to see me. "Landon! Is that you?"

"The one and only. Where's Christina?"

"She stayed home with Xarese."

I nod and exchange greetings with the other boys then begin to head to Christy's house. The one called Justin walked next to me. "So what brings you down here?"

"I have a surprise."

He prodded me for more but I just smiled. As we walked into the house, we were met by Precious at the door. "Hello Landon. What brings you here?"

 

"Hello Precious. I come bearing gifts."

Caleb hugged me. "For me? You shouldn't have."

"I didn't." I say straining to free myself. "Where is Christina?"

"I'll go get her." After Precious leaves the room, the one named Ryan came up to me. I had noticed him watching me carefully since we arrived.

"So what are you?" He asked bluntly.

"I'm sorry?"

"What type of creature are you?"

"Oh, ha ha, I am a messenger angel. I am connected to Christina and I bring her messages to and from the Abovelands."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Connected how?"

I looked into his eyes and saw his soul. He was the one who was an Original.

"If Christina calls me, I have to answer. No matter the situation, no matter the time."

"And yet you still manage to take your own sweet time getting here." I turn and see Christina leaning against the wall. She looked worn out. "What brings you down?"

I hold up the parcel I had. "I have some things for you and the boys."

Her eyes light up and a smile plays on her lips as she lead us all down to the library. With almost childlike excitement, she sat at the table. "So, let's see them."

I took out Justin's first. His staff was made out of mahogany and dragon bone fused together with werewolf blood. "It is stronger than it seems." I say handing it to him. "Christina and Caleb will train with you and Ryan and will teach you both how to use them."

Next was Ryan's staff. It was solid silver with gold embellishments. "Don't let it's simplicity fool you. Only the most precious gold and silver was used for this."

Both boys looked over their staffs exclaiming about how cool they were. Christina pulled me over to the corner. "So, what about me?"

I pull a simple violet pendant necklace out of my pocket and placed it around her neck. As I do this, I catch the eye of the Original. "It's beautiful."

"It will connect you to the boys. If you ever get separated from them, it will send out a telepathic signal alerting them to your danger."

We both stand in silence for awhile looking around. "So how is Xarese?" I finally ask.

She runs her hands through her hair and sighs. "He's changing fast. Faster than I expected. By this time next week we will have to be in the mountain."

"Will you need help?"

"I don't think so. The boys have to get used to their new powers. This would be good practice. But I'll keep you posted."

I smiled and kissed her forehead. By the time I decided to leave, a fresh film of snow covered the ground. Precious wrapped a scarf around my neck and she gave me a hug goodbye. "Give our greetings to your family. Okay?"

"I will. Gentlemen, farewell, and Lady, adieu."

With that I began to walk down the street. As I walked a small breeze began to swirl around me and before I knew it I was home.


	23. Chapter 23

(Ryan's POV)  
About an hour after Landon left, Caleb stepped out to talk to Precious and Justin and I were left with Christina. "So what so you boys think about the staffs?"

"I like mine. Makes me feel badass." Justin smiled.

"Mine makes me feel classy." We both play around with our staffs for a bit until Caleb comes back, then Christina stops us.

"Okay boys, we need to talk about some stuff."

Justin cocked an eyebrow. "What stuff?"

"Magical stuff."

The four of us take seats at the library table. Christina looks at each of us turn before she speaks. "How long has it been since we first started all of this?"

"About three months?" Caleb says thinking aloud.

Wow. Three months. It seemed like just yesterday she and Justin were dragging me out of the house in the middle of the night to tell me they had supernatural powers.

"Do you guys remember how I said Xarese was going to change?" We all nod and she continues. "Well it's time. Xarese has begun to change and we need to get him to a safe place before he changes completely."

"What does that mean for us?" I ask not sure where this was going.

"It means that we are going to spend Christmas break together." She smiles. "I've already created a cover and had your parents sign off on you both (Justin and I) coming with Precious, Caleb, and I out of town for the next two weeks."

Justin and I exchanged worried looks. Were we ready for this? From what I read in the Aquadian handbook she gave us, the change was going to be emotionally and physically draining to all involved. And Justin and I hadn't even begun to learn the spells needed.

I swallow against my nerves. "So when do we leave?"

"Tomorrow morning." Chris said getting up from her chair. "But don't bother packing. Everything you need is already where we're going. Just come over before sunrise."

"Yeah, I'mma need a more specific time then that." Caleb commented.

"Dude, you live here."

"That don't mean I stay here."

Christina sighed and shook her head. "6:30 the latest. Got it?"

We all nod in agreement. We go our separate ways and get ready for the morning. I laid in bed wondering how this was all going to turn out. At some point I fell asleep, but before I did, I heard a pair of female voices outside my window.

"Is he the one?"

"No. This isn't him. We need the other one. This one is the night-waker. We can't use him."

Still half in my dream, I walked over to my window to see who (or what) that was. When I looked though, there were only two small crows sitting on a branch.

At 6:00, I got ready to leave. As I went to leave, my mom called me into the kitchen. I walk on to see what she was up to. "Mom? What are you doing up?"

"What? A mother can't see her baby boy off on his first adventure?" I smile and walk over to give her a hug. "Wow. 15 years old and already going to see the world."

"Mom, we're going up north. There isn't much to see. Especially this time of year."

I wanted to ask my mom how much of all of this she knew. I looked into her eyes and decided against it. I felt her slip something into my pocket.

"Keep safe. And the Prince too."

My eyes went wide. How long had she known? How much does she know? I go to ask her but she pushes me toward the door.

"It's 6:25. The last time I checked Christina wasn't the waiting type. I see you when you get back."

She pushes me out into the early morning flurry of snow and shuts the door.


	24. Chapter 24

(Justin's POV)  
I didn't get much sleep last night, so getting up to go was not hard. My mom and I said our goodbyes before we went to bed so I wouldn't have to wake her. I step out into the cold a little before 6 and begin making my way to Christina's.

I felt the chill creeping into my skin and I liked it. It made me feel more aware of myself and my surroundings. It also helped me think. I thought about all that was going on and all that was about to happen. I started to worry about my preparedness for this. I knew it was something I had to do but, I just didn't feel ready.

I got to Christina's house at about 6:15 and let myself in. The lights were all off downstairs but I heard voices coming from the upper level of the house. Making my way up, I bump into Caleb on his way down. "Oh, hey Justin. I was just about to go unlock the door."

"Umm, it was open when I got here." I told him.

Caleb's face became unreadable. "Really? I must not have locked it earlier. Anyway, you're just in time to help can you go into my room and grab the bags please."

I do as instructed then follow him down into the library. When I do, I see that the floor had been replaced by a pool of what looked to be water swirling towards the center.

"What happened here?"

"This is a portal. It's how we are going to get to where we're going." I watched him as he tossed each bag into the spiraling center.

"How do you know it's going to where it needs to go?" I asked tempted to toss something in there myself.

"Trust me." He laughed. I've been through it several times already this morning. It's set properly."

"Just because it's proper doesn't mean it's safe. Especially when you do it." We both turn and see Ryan standing in the doorway with some more things to be sent through. "Good morning good fellows. How are we on this dreary morning?"

We exchange our hellos and go back up for the rest of the luggage. "Where is Christina?" Ryan asked on our way back up.

"She is preparing Xarese for the trip." Caleb said grabbing another bag.

"What's going on with him?" I asked.

"Yeah. We haven't seen him in the past few weeks."

Out of the corner of my eye I see Caleb's face fall. "Follow me." His tone was suddenly hushed and sad. There was also a slight amount of fear I heard in it too. Almost like he was remembering something he rather wouldn't.

He led us down the corridor to a room I had never noticed before. Caleb gently tapped on the door and waited for a response. A soft "come in" was heard from the other side and he pushed open the door.


	25. Chapter 25

(Caleb's POV)  
As I opened the door, all the memories came rushing back. The pain, the fear, the helplessness. I almost couldn't do it. When we walked in, we saw Xarese laying in his bed where he had been for so long now. The three of us filed in one by one and stood at the foot of his bed. His face lit up a little when he saw the boys.

Ryan greeted him in shaky Aquadian. "Alooka. Xarese. Yola lawen?" (hello Xarese. Are you good?)

Xarese laughed. I remember the first time they met him and he didn't look a day over 10. Now, his body has stretched to where he looks to be almost our age. This was the part I hated the most about the training. How the change happens so quickly. I am pulled out of my thoughts by Xarese's voice.

"Caleb, nako malon. I'm fine. Really."

His voice was deeper than I remember. I smiled at him and excused myself. I couldn't be in there any longer. As I back out of the room, I walk right into Chris.

"Hey. You ok?" She asked giving me a once over.

"I just want this over." I confessed.

She gave me a hug. "I know we all do. Who's in there now?"

"The boys."

"Good. Then they can help. You can go begin to lock up the house."

I give her a soft smile and leave. I go around the house closing doors and putting up security charms. As I passed the front door, I noticed a small black widow spinning a new web right above the mantle.

"You shouldn't be up there." I say to it. "Come on. Let's put you somewhere safe."

I grab the spider and put it outside in the bushes. When I do, I catch the smell of burnt lavender. "I know you're here. If you even think of going near her, I will personally tear you limb from limb."

The scent fades and I go back inside. As I shut the door, I hear a voice behind me. "Who were you talking to?" I turn and see Ryan standing in the living room.

"Don't worry about it."

I smiled and continued to lock up. By the time I finished, the others gone through the portal. I stood at the entrance of the library and took one last look around the room. I decided to unfurl my wings and let them breath for a little bit. It had been a while since I had flown. I took a lap around the library and then hovered over the portal. Then I dove through.


	26. Chapter 26

(Christina's POV)  
After we got through the portal, the boys led Xarese to a room then we started putting things away. After a few hours, I noticed Justin and Ryan looking a little green.

"Interdimensionary motion sickness." Caleb said aloud. "It's like car sickness, but you went through a portal. You should be good in a few hours."

Precious went up and felt the boys faces. "But you boys should lay down, seeing as it is your first time through a portal."

Precious grabs both of them and leads them to their rooms. Meanwhile Caleb and I continue setting things in order. By nightfall, Justin and Ryan were feeling better and Precious had made dinner.

"So…" Ryan began. "What's going to be happening while we're here?"

"We will be doing more advanced training." I explained. "Like spells, potions. Potentially dangerous things we can't do in the gym."

"Correction." Caleb called out. "We can do it in the gym, the only thing is that it would harder to explain to the repair crew."

I saw a mixture of expressions on their faces as the meal ended. Before we all went off to bed, I had the Ryan and Justin follow me down to the training room. It was a grand room with the entrance in the basement. The room had a high ceiling that rose three stories above where we entered which allowed flight and other aerial training. Caleb and I allowed the boys a moment to soak it all in.

Before I could stop him, Caleb bears his wings and takes off in flight. He flies straight up to the rafters and sat on one.

"Hey Chris!" He called down excitedly. "All my boogers are still here!"

"Once a child, always a child." I say to the two still on the ground.But anyway, this is where we will be training from now on. You guys ready for this?"

They simultaneously say no. I laugh and put my arms over their shoulders and we begin to walk out.

"Best to get some sleep. We start tomorrow."

Ryan, Justin, and Caleb went to their rooms and I went to see Xarese. When I opened his door, I saw him picking at some of the newly formed scales.

"I wasn't picking at them!" He said hiding his hands when he saw me.

"Mmmhmm."

I sit next to him and put my arms around him. "How are you feeling tonight?"

"Not too much pain."

"Ok. If you feel like you need to go in the water tell me."

I feel him nod his head against my shoulder. After a moment of silence, Xarese speaks. "Christina, lan mela bu-mata." (Christina, tell me a story)

"Which one?"

"It doesn't matter. I just don't want silence."

I make a story bubble and begin the story of the Aquadians. By the time I finished, he was asleep. I took a moment to look at him. His skin was still pale but you could see the gold scales that would soon be making up his tale. His body too was different. It had stretched to where he was only about a head shorter than me when he used to only come up to my waist.

I leave the room and head to mine. Before I fell asleep, I thought of all the things we had to do. I just hope nothing would go wrong.


	27. Chapter 27

(Overview)  
Over the next few days the kids began to fall into their set routine. Training in the morning and studying in the evening. On their fifth morning there, Christina and Caleb showed the boys their wings.

"This is what Justin saw that one night a few months ago."

Ryan walked around inspecting them. "Are they heavy?"

"Not really." Caleb said. "We spend our entire lives with them, so if they are, we're used to them."

"But if there is too much time between flights it will knock you off balance a little."

"How high can you go with these?" Justin asked pulling at a few of Christina's feathers.

"As high as we want." She stated. "We can go a few hundred feet higher than an airplane And we never get tired while flying. Can either of you tell me why?"

"Because you are no longer in your human bodies. Your body won't tire out because it is virtually indestructible." Ryan said as if quoting a dictionary.

Justin looked at the wings for a bit longer then a thought pope into his head. "Can we fly?"

"Yes and no." Christina explained. "In your human form you can't, but you can learn how to shape-shift. You can read up about it in the library."

Ryan took a note of it. "So what are we actually going to do today?"

Christina pulls out an old book with gold lettering and place it on the table. "We are going to work on introductory spells. Do you guys have your staffs with you?"

The boys say no and are sent to go get them. They leave and within minutes are back with staffs in hand.

"So before we begin we have a rule," Chris said as they came back in. "Never leave your staff."

"Well where are yours?" Ryan asked.  
He lifted his shirt and on his side was a tattoo of an angel holding a scepter. He reached his hand into the drawing and pulled out his scepter. Caleb's scepter was sapphire with a ruby center and onyx base piece. He pulled it out completely and stood it on the ground. The boys stood slack jawed and amazed.

"That..."

"Was..."

"Amazing/Insane."

Christina laughed and picked up her purse. "Sorry boys, mine isn't as impressive."

She dug in her bag and pulled out what looked to be a pen. At it's full size, it had a 4 ounce diamond at its tip that was surrounded by carved sapphire which twisted to connect to the Emerald base. Both scepters were about six feet tall at full length, but only weighed about three pounds.

"The nifty thing about them" Chris began. "Is that you can use them at any size. I usually keep mine at twelve inches like a wand. It's just easier that way."

"So how do we shrink ours?"Ryan asked.

"Hold it in your dominant hand, and imagine it going down to the ideal size." It took a few tries, but within a half hour the boys had it. Sort of. By that evening they had mastered it.

"Tomorrow we can learn some spells." Christina said as they headed up for dinner.

"You guys should look up some you might wanna learn. Might make it easier."

After dinner everyone went about their business. Justin decided to forgo studying and went down to the training room instead. At first he wandered around the room poking at things, then he picked up a rod and hit one of the training dummies in the head. He hit it so hard that the dummy's head flew off.

Suddenly a voice from above catches his attention. "Its a home run! And the crowd goes wild."

Justin got into a fighting stance. "Who's there?.

"Relax." The voice called out. "It's only me." Caleb floated down from the rafters silently.

Justin went and replaced the rod. "Sorry. I didn't know you were here. I'll go."

"No. You can stay. You don't bother me."

Caleb's voice was smooth and relaxed. Almost too relaxed. Caleb was still hovering over head softly humming to himself.

"Are you ok?" Justin asked.

"I'm wonderful. What about you?"

"Caleb, are you drunk?"

Caleb said nothing but smile at Justin and began to fly back towards the rafters above room.

"What are you doing here anyway?"

"Talking to the stars."

Justin watched as Caleb returned to his perch in the rafters with very fluid and deliberate movements. He was definitely drunk. Justin is pulled out of his thoughts by Caleb's voice.

"I'm actually not drunk."

"Oh really?"

Caleb floated down again. "Nope. You see, we angels are sensitive to the moon phases. I am very lucid under a new moon while Christina is not."

.But you were fine this morning."

Caleb landed and draped his arms around Justin and sighed. "So what were you coming in for?" He asked changing the topic.

"I was just going to practice some stuff."

Caleb sank into one of the lounge chairs in the room and began to sing aloud. Justin shook his head and began to look at his book of spells.

Caleb called out. "You won't learn anything from a book that way."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I can help make this interesting."

Justin narrowed his eyes and closed his book. Caleb licked his lips and smiled. He leaned forward with a sudden fire in his eyes. "As I have seen, you and Ryan are a team. He is obviously the brains, so you must be the brawn. I can help you learn spells faster and I can help you with combat. If you think you can handle it."

Justin thought about it. Was this a real offer or was this the "moon phase" speaking?

"Deal." Justin said after some thought. "On one condition."

"I'm listening."

"No one can know about this."

Caleb smiled. "You took the words right out of my mouth."


	28. Chapter 28

(Ryan's POV)  
After dinner I went up to the library as usual to look up some spells. As I pulled out a book, I heard a soft voice behind me. "That's a bit heavy duty don't you think?"

I turned and saw Christina sitting at a table with several books open and scattered around her. "What are you doing here?"

"The same thing you are. I need to brush up on my blocking spells."

She smiles at me and I return the gesture. I sat in the chair next her and began to look at what I had taken out. To my surprise, the book spoke.

"Simple Spells for any Seer."

Christina saw me jump back and tried to hide a laugh.

"You could have warned me you know."

"And miss that?"

I made a face at her and she laughed again. "It's a charm book." She explained to me. "You ask it what you want to know and it will tell you. As long as it is apart of its information."

"Really?"

"Try it. What type of spell were you looking for?"

I didn't know. I was just going to flip, through the subjects and see. "How about... friendship."

"Ooh. You're gonna have to be more specific about that. There are spells that end friendships and spells that prolong it."

"Ok." I thought and looked through the other options. "What about...love?"

The color in her cheeks began to rise. "Would it be falling in love, passionate love, falling out of love..." She continues to name a few more but I found myself looking at her instead of listening. "So which will it be?"

"I don't know." I said to cover the fact I wasn't paying attention. "You choose one."

"Ok." She said tucking some of her hair behind her ear. "How about a falling in love spell?"

"You mean other than the one I'm already under?" I say without thinking.

"What?"

"What?"

We look at each other. Thankfully she drops the subject. "Why don't we try an enlightenment spell instead?"

"Which one?"I ask desperate to bury my little blunder.

"One that lets you understand languages. Or maybe one that lets you read emotions and mixed signals." She sneaks a sideways glance at me. I chose the first one. "So which language will it be?"

"You choose one."

Over the next hour Christina showed me how to properly cast a language learning spell. As the evening grew later we parted ways.

On my way back to my room, I passed by Xarese's room. As I passed the door, I heard soft sobbing coming from the other side of the door. Curious, I knock. There was a quiet "Come in". I open the door and see Xarese on the floor in tears.

I rush over to him. "Xarese! What happened?"

"I...just wanted...to go...to the water." He tells me between sobs.

I sit next to him and wrap him in my arms. He was shaking with every breath he took and his blue eyes were bloodshot. I ran my fingered through his hair soothingly. "Why were you going to the water?"

"It was calling me. It said I needed to come to it. That I belonged to it." His voice trails off as if he was in a trance. I followed his line of sight and see that he was looking out the window towards the lake. "There it goes again. I need to touch it. The water. I need..."

He trails off again and his eyes go glassy. I read something about this. He needed to be submerged in water that is touched by moonlight. I look around the room and notice the bathroom and what looked like a large tub in the center. I tell Xarese to stay put and go check it out.

I find the tub standing alone in the center of the room with a large stained glass window over head that let in the moonlight. Perfect. I run some water and go back to get him. Moments later, he was sinking into the cool water of the tub. That's when I noticed them. Two red lines under his jaw.

"The final stages." Caleb said from behind me. "After the gills form it is time for the passing of the child ceremony."

"How did you-"

"The door was open." There was no sound but for Xarese softly humming to himself. "You did good. Now go get some sleep. I can take it from here."

I nod and get up. Only then do I realize I'm completely soaked in water.

"A warm shower should fix that. Goodnight Ryan."

I can do nothing but nod again.


	29. Chapter 29

(Christina's POV)  
During the night I woke up to tapping at my window.

"Luztam."

My room lights turned on and I looked towards my window. There was nothing there but I still heard tapping. I got up to investigate. When I opened my window there was a fairly thick layer of snow on the window sill. I instantly assumed it was an owl or something looking for somewhere warm. I start to clear off some of the snow, my fingers close around something soft and velvety. It was a white rose partially buried in the snow. I knew there was a rose vine that came up to my window but to see one bloom in winter?

I dug a little deeper to see where it was growing from and felt feathers. I clear more snow and see a frozen raven with the white rose growing out of it's opened mouth. I fall back screaming and call for my grandmother. She runs in in a blind panic followed by Justin.

"What is it?" She asked checking me over. "What happened? Are you hurt?"

"He's here!" I manage to eek out. "He found us! Precious!"

Justin goes to close the window and sees the bird. "Whoa. Precious, I think you need to see this."

She lets me go and goes to see what he is talking about. Even from behind her I can see the color drain from her face.

"Incera."

The creature burst into a bright blue flame and disappeared. Precious held my hand until my breathing slowed. "We'll leave as soon as the passing ceremony is over." She said trying to calm me.

Justin looked around uncomfortable. "What was that?"

"It was the work of a demon. He's been following Christina for quite some time now." Precious explained.

"Why?"

"Because she is vulnerable. She is young and the level of her power is immense. He wants it for himself and he'll stop at nothing to get it."

Justin was quiet for awhile. He reached for my hand. "What can we do to fight him?" He asked gripping it firmly.

"Nothing. All we can do is get her home. There is a protective spell around the town that keeps him out but here, here she's as vulnerable as a newborn bird."

Nothing was said between the three of us for a while. "Justin, can you stay in here with her for the night?"

"If that is ok with Christina." Both of them look at me.

"It's fine. I'd rather not be alone."

Precious gets up and makes her way to the door.

"Try to get some sleep. Preparations for the passing of the child start tomorrow."  
She leaves and quietly shuts the door behind herself. Justin helps me up and helps me get back into the bed. I silently roll over and let him slide in next to me.

After some time, he spoke. "I know I'm not who you want, but I want you to know I'll be here for you. No matter what."

I say nothing but move closer to him.

The next morning we both woke up to the sound of work going on outside.

"What is going on?" Justin asked trying to run the sleep from his eyes.

I roll over and look at him. "Passing of the child. Everyone is getting everything together."

"What do we have to do?"

"Prepare Xarese for the ceremony."

"What does that mean?"

At this moment I noticed we were nose to nose and his eyes looked almost golden in the unwelcome sunlight. "Today we cater to his every need, for tomorrow he shall be gone."

"What?"

"He's going home today. Today he claims his place as Xarese, Prince of the Aquadians."

Justin stretches. "Sounds… important."

I laugh and push him out of the bed. "Just hurry up."

I saw the visible shock on his face. I don't usually laugh around him. I thought about what he had said last night. Whether we wanted to be or not, we were stuck together. Might as well try to get along.

After about an hour, we both stood outside Xarese' door. "Just so you know, he looks like hell. Try not to stare."

Justin's face was unreadable as we entered the room. Xarese was in the large basin like tub Ryan and Caleb had put him in the night before. His skin was rubbery and was stretched in places where scales were forming. Even his blue eyes had changed to a soft gold.

"Alooka Xarese." I greet him.

Xarese looked happy to see us but his voice sounded strained. "Sisi. Odon rezo malon cono mela? Son ethpum?"

I bow next to his bed and motion for Justin to do the same. "Cumate- ka Xarese, yola essu leve woola aie. This evening will be the Passing of the Child ceremony."

There was new energy in his voice when he spoke again. "My family is coming?"

"Yes and preparations are underway." We slowly sat up and looked at him. "Today, my young prince, we will assist you in anyway you see fit."

Water splashed as he moved to a sitting position. "Take me outside?"


	30. Chapter 30

(Justin's POV)  
I watch as Christina causes the water in Xarese' tub to lift up with him in it. It looked almost like a topless water balloon with Xarese floating inside.

"You ready?"

Xarese looked slightly unsure about his new mode of transportation. After a shaky affirmation, we left the room.

When we stepped outside I was shocked. Along the perimeters of the property, snow was falling steadily. But where we were standing, it was summer.

Before I could even for a question, Caleb was walking over to us. "This is not a ceremony you want to have in winter. Trust me. Hey Xar. How are you feeling?"

"Lawen Caleb."

Both smiled bigger than I had seen I days. "Let me show you around."

We follow him as he walks past a tree that straddled the border of the plot. "This path goes from the backyard to the lake. It will be lit as they enter. Your parents and siblings will be over here while we will be over there..."

He continues walking and pointing things out. I lean over to Christina. "How many sibs does he have?"

Xarese hears me and answers. "I have 4. Twin girls named Ithfa and Vole. And twin boys named Tuforne and Rengsth."

I could feel the excitement building as the day went on. Slabs of water went up forming tables and chairs. As the sun began to set, Christina and I lead him back inside to get ready.

"Cumate-Ka Xarese, kemgora leve woola.(Prince Xarese, tonight you return home.( don't worry, I still need subtitles.)) The royal garbs have been delivered. Justin, you can go see Precious for your outfit."

She dismissed me and I left. As the door shut hands gripped my shoulders.

"Gotcha!"

"Wh-? Caleb?!"

He smiled mischievously as I looked him over. "You ready?"

"For what?"

Caleb slung his arm over my shoulders and led me down the hall. "Tonight, you will experience beautiful fish people, exotic wine, intoxicating food, and if you're like me, the hot lust of a cold blooded creature."

I stare at him blankly. "Just watch out for Rengsth. You're just his type."

"What?"

He says nothing else and turns on his heel and runs down the hall.

"Oh Justin. I was just coming to look for you." I turn around and see Precious standing behind me with a bundle of teal and silver fabric in her arms. "You just saved me about ten minutes. Come along."

She leads me into a room that held a washtub and some other grooming things.

"Strip and get in the tub."

I look at her questioningly.

"Hurry up. We don't have all night."

I turn away to undress and notice a body in the tub. Ryan was in the water up to his nose. "Hey. She jinx you too?"

"No. Caleb brought me- what's going on?"

Precious dropped what she was doing with an exasperated sigh. "For the Passing Of The Child ceremony, you both need to be washed and dressed in a ceremonious ritual. The seers take care of the seers and the angels care for the angels. Now Justin get in that tub or I'll put you in it. And trust me you don't want that."

Ryan looked at me and shook his head. Apparently he got put in. I looked around and only saw one tub. "Don't worry. It's bigger than it looks."

"Well then close your eyes creep."

He laughs and disappears under the water. I undress and gingerly step in to the tub and feel something slimy pull me in.

"What the hell?"

Ryan surfaces and bursts into uncontrollable laughter.

"You knew? And you didn't warn me?" I ask in disbelief.

"And miss that? No thanks."

I cut him a look and feel something slide up my leg. "Ryan. What's in the water?"

"Water nymphs." He said casually. "Take my advice and just close your eyes and relax."

At this moment several blobs of water came up and blinked. A silvery laugh was heard as they retreated into the depths.

Ryan and I were in the water for about thirty minutes and I don't think I've ever been scrubbed like that nor do I ever want to be again.

Precious dried us off and began to get us dressed. We had matching teal and silver suits and leather gloves. One pair was silver and the other was teal.

"Choose between yourselves and meet me downstairs."

I look at Ryan as she leaves. "What color do you want?"

He picks up one of each.

"Hey, Justin?" I look at him. "Do think we can pull this off? I mean... We're just kids."

"Think of it as one of our imaginary games we used to play. We got this." I give him a hug a we both just breath for a while. After we pull apart we each grab a pair of gloves. On our way out I take one from him.

"One of each." I say to him. "Two halves of a whole."

We both arrive downstairs sporting one teal glove and one silver. Precious looks up at us and sees it. A smile plays on her lips for a moment then it disappears.

"Good! You're both here."

Christina steps out of the room and moves towards us. I see her dress and the ends of her hair float like they were underwater. "Well don't you both look lovely."

"Not as lovely as you." Ryan blurts out.

She raises a brow and he goes red in the face. As I go to say something a pale stranger walks out behind her.

"Alooka nusman." (Hey guys)

Xarese stepped into the hall and looked like a normal teen. His skin was back to its youthful firmness but his eyes were different. They were a soft gold now. His hair was still white but now it looked healthy and was pulled back into a low ponytail.

Ryan looked dumbfounded. "You look so..."

"Different." I finish for him.

"Lawen San ot Cejit San?" (Good different or bad different?)

"Lawen San!" We tell him. "Lawen San!"

Christina laughed and threw her arms around him. "As much as I would love to have us all stand here amazed by this change of appearance, we have to get out to the lake to greet his parents and we can't be late."

As if on cue, Caleb ran up to us. "Dolphins have been spotted."

We all walk (jog) out to the backyard and Ryan and I almost stopped in amazement. There was a path that was lit by lanterns and the dining area that had been set up was already halfway full of people.

"Who are they?" I ask.

"Other Angels and Seers." Caleb informs me. "As we give Xar back, other Aquadians give their newborns to us."

"It's a cycle." Chris adds.

 

Precious stands with Xarese at the top of the pathway while Caleb, Christina, Ryan, and I go down to the waters edge.

Christina tells us what we have to do. "We each have to walk in with one of the siblings. Caleb and I will take the girls while you boys will help the brothers. And Justin, please be careful of Rengsth. He's more than a little handsy and Ryan just keep an eye on Tuforne. He's shy and might wander off."

"How will we tell them apart?"

"By how they kiss."


	31. Chapter 31

(Christina's POV)

The water of the lake began to ripple as the Aquadians got closer. Finally the first water carriage arrived. The seahorses broke the surface and came up to the shore to let out its contents. About twenty carriages later I spotted Current, the lead horse of the royal carriage. We all take a step back as it came onto the shore of the lake and stopped. This carriage was made of sea glass and various colors of seaweed and coral. The doors opened and out stepped Xarese older twin sisters Ithfa and Vole. They had the same pale skin as Xaraes but their hair was silky black and fell down their backs in a waterfall effect.

"Alooka Cumate-La Ithfa te Cumate-La Vole." Caleb and I said in unison. We bow low as we take their hands. And the girls return the greeting. My lips met momentarily with Ithfa's and we began to make our way up the path. I try to make small talk but Ithfa was soft spoken like Tuforne and looked to be just as easily distracted.

"It is all beautiful." She said suddenly. "Thank you for this. And for my brother."

Soon we reach our seats and are followed by Caleb, Vole, and the boys. At that moment the shore of the lake began to glow and split into two walls of water. Up from the depths walked Queen Pohe and King Ozuzi. All in attendance stood and applauded in welcome. They approached the highest table and took their seats. Water flutes signaled the crowd to be quiet as Precious and Xarese entered.

"Cumate-na Ozuzi! Cumate-wa Pohe! kemgora Awolmak! Ula leve Cumate-Ka Xarese!" (Welcome King Ozuzi! Welcome Queen Pohe! Tonight we celebrate! We return to you, Prince Xarese!)

A loud cheer went up from the crowd as Xarese went up and bowed before his parents.

"Cumate-na Ozuzi! Cumate-wa Pohe! Alooka!" (King Ozuzi! Queen Pohe! Welcome!)

The King stood and bowed low to his son causing another cheer to go up from the crowd. Then the party began. Music played and course after course of food was served until the early hours of the morning. Finally it came time for the ceremony.

The entire Aquadian assembly made their way into the lake and Xarese and I waited on the shore.

"Mela Isi lo?" (I go far?( I must go far?)) Xarese asked voice breaking.

"Yes." I say fighting tears of my own. "But you're going home. And we'll see each other again soon."

"Mela Vland Isi." (I am sad to go.) He says letting a few tears go.

"Don't be. Are you ready my prince?"

His now gold eyes were full of tears. I wrap him in a hug one last time and whisper my goodbye. The others come around and do the same.

"You need any help Chris?" Caleb asked wiping at his eyes.

"That would be appreciated Caleb."

Xarese was his after all. We stepped back and began to form the water bubble. I cleared my mind of all things and focused on the water.

I felt the cool sensation of the liquid coursing through my veins and out from my fingertips. I opened my eyes and saw Caleb concentrating the same way. Once Xarese was completely encased in water, he gave a final wave goodbye and gave in to the transformation.

A soft green light began in his chest and spread outward, soon covering him and filling the bubble. The light soon changed to a dark stormy grey and the thing began to foam inside. Locking eyes with Caleb, he and I maneuver the bubble over the lake. Soon enough the turbulence inside stops and a bright calming blue fills the case. Then, much like a regular soap bubble, it popped leaving the now transformed Xarese suspended in the air for all to see.

He looked magnificent. He had a tail that was a deep green with fins that were gold when caught in the light. And atop his head sat a crown of shells, pearls, and sea glass. All in attendance bow before the newly crowned prince. Caleb raises a hand in respect.

"Until the currents bring us together again." He calls out.

Xarese does the same then dives into the water and arms of his family.

~The next morning~

The next morning held no sign of the previous nights revelries. The snow had returned to the yard and all of the things that were set up had vanished. After giving the cabin one more check, we gathered our things and met at the portal.

Precious does a head count. "Everyone ready?"

Precious stepped through first claiming age before beauty. Justin was next followed by Ryan then it was my turn.

Giving Caleb one last glance, I jumped through. Instead of the cool rush of air I usually felt, the air burned me. Suddenly I tumbled out of the portal completely disoriented and land on slate colored marble.

"Christina Curing." A shadow loomed up behind me. "Princess of the fallen angels. Welcome to your new home."


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((A/N): Guess who learned how to write dialog! From now on I will be writing properly. Thanks for dealing with it up till now. I'll try to update the other chapters.)

Going through the portal this time wasn't as bad as the first. Or at least I didn't feel the floor tilting away from me. Justin and I instantly plop onto the couch as the others arrived.

"It was actually kind of nice this time." Justin mumbled through the pillows. I grunt an agreement and am suddenly hit with exhaustion.

"Is there anything else we have to do?" I ask hiding a yawn. "Or can we go home?"

Christina had thrown herself into the armchair next us and said nothing. Caleb spoke from the same area. "Go my friends." He said dramatically. "Be free and sow your wild oats."

Justin got up first mumbling about how he did not want to know what that meant. He pulled me up to and began steering me towards the door. Finally Christina spoke.

"You boys can take the rest of the week off." Her voice sounded heavy. "You both had a rough few days. You deserve it."

I pealed myself away from Justin and go wrap her in a hug. She smelt like burning lavender. "See you at school?"

"Of course." She kisses my cheek and sends us off.

As soon as the door shut Justin started.

"Chrissy and Ryan sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Really?" I deadpan.

"You guys are painful to watch." He said letting himself into my house. "We're back Mrs. B!"

Before I can say anything my mom rounds the corner and hugs us. She fires off the regular questions of 'how was it' 'what did you see?' Blah blah blah.

"So mom, how long were we gone for?" I ask over dinner.

"About a week and a half." She says around her food. "Magic time is faster than human time."

I go to say something else but my thoughts get replaced by visions of Christina crying and being forced to drink something and then falling limp. Her lips didn't move but I could hear her screaming for help. Frozen, I watch as her eyes dilate and constrict changing from her regular violet to a deep crimson.

I'm pulled out of my thoughts by the phone ringing. Out of the corner of my eye I see my mom get up and answer it. In a blind panic I run for the door and down to the Christina's.

I begin banging on the door. "Christina! Christina are you ok?!?" The door soon flung open and I tumbled in onto Chris herself.

"Whoa there." She said helping me up. "What's going on?"

I scramble to my feet and look into her eyes. Violet. Breathing a sigh of relief, I register her worried questioning. "Ryan answer me. What is going on?"

"I saw you being hurt." I try to explain. "You were being force fed and screaming." My breathing became labored and I felt her pull me into her chest. She carded her fingers through my hair and hummed to calm me.

\----

Weeks passed and school began again. Our weekly training and classes continued as normal but something felt off. Christina was being distant and not as demonstrative as she usually was. Whenever I would ask her about it she would say something about it not being needed.

One night in late January, as Justin and I made our way home after training, we got caught in a snow flurry.

"Hey Ryan! Remember how we used to play mystery man in this?"

Before I could say anything in response, the falling snow formed the shape of a person. "Ryan! Justin!" It called out. "Can you hear me?"

Justin and I exchange glances and pull out our staffs. "We can." Justin said to it, ready to fight. "Who are you?"

"It's me." The shape responded. "Please! I don't have much time!" The more it spoke, the stronger the voice became. "The one who is with you is not me. I'm stuck in Helsia. Tell Caleb Liam has me." Just as it finished, the air became still and we saw that it was Christina. She looked between the two of us and looked close to tears. "Please help me." Her voice was breaking. "Please."

Suddenly we were looking at a snow mound.


	33. Chapter 33

I woke up at 3 am to my phone buzzing with messages from Ryan and Justin ranging from where are you to please call back. The final message said to meet at Justin's.

Shrugging on some clothes, I made my way to the door but stopped when I saw Christina sitting in the kitchen with her dinner still on her plate.

"Hey kiddo." I said poking my head in. "You ok? I haven't seen you eat for the past few days."

She looked up at me and for a moment it looked as if her eyes shifted in color. That's been happening for a few weeks too. "I'm fine. I ate a lot during a club meeting."

"But what's up though?" I stepped closer and saw her move back. "You've been really quiet the past few days?"

"Just haven had much to say." She ends the conversation and turns back to the books she had next to her.

I shake the proverbial snow from my shoulders and head down to Justin's. When I got there I let myself in and found the boys sitting in the living room with a few papers spread between them looking worried.

"Good you're finally here." Justin sighed rather impatiently.

"What's going on?" I asked grabbing a seat. They look between each other for a bit before Ryan spoke.

"What would you do if you were being held against your will in a dangerous place?"

"Call for back up. Why?"

"How about if you knew you were all alone?" His tone was alarmingly serious.

"You guys are making me nervous. What happened?"

The boys told me that as they left training last night, they were caught in a snow flurry and at the center of it was Christina telling them she was in Helsia.

"She says someone named Liam has her." Justin concluded.

This couldn't be. I knew she was acting off, but a doppelgänger? "Are you guys sure?"

"Positive." Ryan sighed. "Plus, on the day we got back from he cabin, I thought I saw Chris being force fed something. When I went to check on her she was in the house and looked fine."

"Ryan!" I groaned. "That was almost three months ago. Why didn't you say anything sooner?" I began pacing. This wasn't good. Not to be dramatic or anything but this could very well mean the end of the world.

"I'm sorry!" He exclaimed in response. "She calmed me down and I thought I was over reacting. But things weren't adding up."

I look at him. "Things like what?"

"Little things."

"Like what Ryan?" I stare him down until he speaks.

"Well her voice. It's to heavy." He begins. "The old Christina normally has a lightness when we talk meanwhile the new Chris hasn't said much to any of us." He looks at me and I gesture for him to continue. "Then she doesn't smell right. Whenever you or Chris do anything that involves magic or transforming, there is a certain smell. Your smell is more of a forest scent and Chris had a snowy scent. This person smells like burning lavender. It's always faint but it's there."

He was right. But we needed to be sure before any action could be taken. I told them this.

"But how?" Justin asked. "The codex doesn't exactly have anything in it at could help. Ryan checked."

I racked my brain for something that could help. That's when I noticed the moon was full and rather large. "Grab your coats. We have to go visit an old friend of mine."

We walk in silence to the local cemetery. If my hunch was right, we were going to find Jean on nights like this. Sure enough he was sitting near a Willow tree looking up at the stars.

"Hey," I whispered to the others. "Hang back for a minute."

Justin and Ryan stayed put as I inched closer to my target. As I got closer, I heard him talking to someone.

"As you get older, you'll learn how to tell history with them. The stars see everything. Here and beyon- AAAAHHHHHH!!!" I jumped out of hiding and startled Jean enough to make him explode into billions of stars. "CALEB FRANKE YOU COMPLETE TURD!!!!"

"Long time no see Jean." I smiled at the array of stars and colors that now surrounded me. "Justin, Ryan. Come on over and meet my friend Jean."

Both approached with eyes wide in amazement. "Great. You came with company." Jean said from somewhere in his expanse.

I roll my eyes. "Boys, this is Jean. He is a Galexmos."

"Pleased to meet you Jean." Ryan, always polite. "Your colors are amazing."

I interrupted in view of time. "Can you pull yourself together please Jean? We need your help."

"You know I can't do that for at least five minutes because of your dumb ass." His voice echoed. "What do you need anyway?"

"We need you to find Christina." I said plainly.

"The Princess?! What happened to her?"

"If we knew we wouldn't be here you giant ball of gas." Even without a face I knew he was cutting me a look. Soon the stars around us began to move. It took some time but then I realized he was actually going back in time. Ryan noticed as well.

"Um Jean?" He began cautiously. "You're going back in time. Why?"

"It appears the Princess hasn't been on this plain for many months." A swear comes from Justin and I. "The earliest I'm seeing is December. I'd say a week and a half before Christmas."

"That was around the same time we came back from the cabin." Justin said to us.

I turn back to Jean. "If she hasn't been here all this time then who is in her place?"

Jean looks a but longer before answering. "Tahew. He is a shapeshifter. He was commissioned by Liam for his ability to perfectly mimic Princess Christina."

"Is he a demon?" Ryan said flipping through his codex.

"He is." Jean took a moment to compose himself and solidify into a human shape. "He will be easy to get rid of. The only thing is, he's connected to to Liam so he will know once Tahew has been dispatched." Without his voice echoing everywhere the air around us was quieter. Minus the sound of sniffling. "Oh no!" Jean exclaimed upon hearing it. "Armin I'm sorry. Where did you go?"

"I'm … over … here." A small voice called out. Sitting on a tomb stone was a small blond boy.

Jean rushed over and picked him up. "Shhhh. Don't cry. I know I scared you. I'm sorry."

"I never thought I'd see the day you of all people would be a father." I teased approaching the small child. "Hey little guy. Did I scare you?" He hid his face and nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm daddy Caleb."

"Like hell you are!" Jean grumbled.

"If we were still in Germany." I refuted.

"It was 1927."

"Till death do us part, remember?"

"Unfortunately."

The little boy in his arms wiggled around to look between us. "He's your hu-band?"

"Armin! Who taught you about that?"

I finally got a good look at little Armin. Fine blond hair and ocean blue eyes fit him. A perfect combination. That meant one thing. "He's a supernova."

"Yeah. But back to what you need, I can look for anyone who can give you information."

"But?" I cut him a look. "I know you. You never do anything for free."

"I need a babysitter." He promptly pushed the baby into my arms and disappeared.

\-----

"Now I remember why we split up." I grumbled as we walked back to Ryan's house.

"You don't like papa?" Armin questioned from Ryan's arms.

"Oh no I do." I said remembering the child in our midst. "Just sometimes he makes me mad." Truth be told a lot of the time he made me mad but the make up was always worth it.

We let ourselves into Ryan's house only to find his mom coming down the stairs. "Where have you boys been?" Uh oh. "It's almost midni-" she stopped when her eyes fell onto Armin. "A supernova?"

Armin smiled at the recognition. The boys however gawked. "Mom!" Ryan began. "How much do-"

"How did I know about Galexmos and supernovas? Or how did I know about Caleb and Christina?" He looks at his mother in disbelief. "I've known all my life." She continues. "We may be originals but we aren't ignorant of the worlds around us." With that she plucks Armin from Ryan's arms and turns to me. "Now Caleb, there must be a particular reason you've had these children out all night."

Don't you hate it when people younger than you can scare you into doing things. Mrs. Butler stared me down till I spoke. "How strong is the silencing charm?"

"I replaced it this morning."

"So you know then?"

"No. I change them once a week. What is going on?"

"Christina is missing and a shapeshifter is in her place." One thing I've learned about Rose Butler, is that from a young age she liked the facts front and center.

"And how long have you known this?"

"There have been suspicions since we got back from the lake." I not so subtlety look over to Ryan who seemed to have short circuited in light of new information about his mother.

"Papa Jean is looking for someone to help." Armin pipped up.

"Jean is in town?"

"Probably wouldn't have been if he knew I was here." I mumble more to myself then anything. A hand is gently placed on my shoulder.

"I doubt that. Love never really fades. You know that." Rose smiles all motherly like and I can't help but smile back. "Now, who wants to help me make hot coco?"

Armin nearly bounces out of her arms chanting 'Me, me, me!' They leave for he kitchen and I plop into an arm chair. I'm getting to old for his nonsense. After easing Ryan into a chair, Justin came and sat next to me. "You're looking old." He joked.

"I am old." I sighed.

Justin looked at me unsure. "How old are you?"

"I was born in 1865 in hope county, Georgia." I shrugged. "The last slave baby born there too."

"That makes you over a hundred!"

"You sound surprised." I glance over at him and he looked concerned.

"If you've lived this long, does that mean you never met your seer?" His question was innocent. The pain it brought me however was not.

"I met my seer in 1883. My mother and I ran away to Quebec in 1880 after some people tried to lynch me." I tried not to look at him as I spoke. "I reckon it was the first time I had changed into an Angel. The local folk didn't like it and put a bounty on my head and my ma's. So we ran.

"After crossing the border we met a family called the Costas. Fine people. Nicest I had ever met at the time. They took my ma and me in, fed us, clothed us, and didn't ask for a penny in return. They said fam'ly don't charge fam'ly."

"What was that supposed to mean?" Asked Ryan who had since joined the conversation.

"Mr. Costa taught me about angels and the like. He said his wife Annabel was one and she ended up teaching me everything I knew."

"And your seer?" Justin asked again meaning I had gone off on a tangent somewhere.

"I met her in a market place one winter." I said finally addressing the topic. "I was trying to get myself out of some trouble and she walked by and I went blank." I laughed a little at the memory. "I pulled a trick where a made a small boy's nickel disappear and ran off. Turned out that little boy had big brothers and seeing I was the only black kid in town, I was easy to find."

"So what happened?" Ryan asked.

"I ran all through downtown and eventually into a saloon where I bumped right into her. I looked up and all I saw was red hair and blue eyes looking down very angrily. I honestly thought she'd kill me before the boys got there, but as they walked in she began kicking me and berating me for being late. She probably saved my life."

We all sat in silence wrapped in our own thoughts until Rose and Armin came back with the hot chocolates.

"Why so glum?" She asked seeing our faces.

Ryan reached for his cup as Armin squirmed into his lap. "Caleb just told us about how he met his seer." Rose nodded in understanding.

"Elizabeth was a good woman." She said after talking her own cup. "A bit of a temper. But good." I grunt in agreement.

"What happened to her?"

"She was killed in a demon uprising." I say noticing that it hurt a little less this time.

Ryan watched me over the brim of his cup. "Did you ever fall in love after that?"

I stopped and thought about it. Had I? Before I could answer, the front door opened and a person in a black fur coat walked in. "Caleb Franke doesn't fall in love." An all too familiar voice declared. A pale hand reached up removed the hood. "Lust, however is another thing."


	34. Chapter 34

The entire demeanor of the room changed. Caleb's natural grin vanished as soon as the visitors face appeared from under the hood of the jacket.

"No!" Caleb said in place of a greeting to the new arrival. "Out." He began pushing him towards the door but the person slipped out of his grip.

"Why do you always treat me like this?" The person whined. "Is this how you treat your lovers now?"

Caleb payed the newcomer no attention and turned to Jean. "Of all the people in the collective universe, you brought him?!?" Caleb's voice was nearly a shriek but Jean only smiled.

"James is here for two reasons. First, if Christina is in Helsia then he is the only one who can open the portal. And second, we needed someone who already knows how to deal with you."

Caleb made a strangled sound and stomped out of the room. Justin and Ryan looked between the remaining two. "Everyone," Jean began. "This is James. He's an old friend of ours."

James shrugged off his coat and took a seat. "Pleasure to meet you boys, and it is always a treat to see little Rosie B." He smiled warmly at Mrs. Butler.

"I haven't been called that in years." She laughed. "Good to see you too James."

Silence fills the room as the others take in the full sight of the new arrival. From a distance James looked rather normal. He had short, spiked blond hair and had skin that seemed to be translucent under the living room light. But up close his eyes were different. They were green with some gold around the edges and had had the appearance of reptilian eyes. "So you are Justin and Ryan?" James said making himself at home. "I've been hearing about you both. The original and the seer." He smiled to himself a bit at the last part.

Before anything else was said, Caleb came back in with what smelt like a strong alcoholic beverage. "I've decided," he began "I will be as professional as possible with you two." He stopped and took a drink as he stared James and Jean down. "Christina's life is at stake along with the balance of the world so-"

"Whoa, the balance of the world?" Justin interrupted. "Aren't we being a bit dramatic?"

Silence fell on the group and the three men looked at him in shock. "Do you know who Christina is?" James asked cautiously.

"We know she's an angel." Justin shrugged. "I mean the word 'Princess' has been thrown around here and there but as far as we know, she's just another angel."

Jean says something indecipherable and it causes Caleb to chuckle. "Gallic. Haven't heard that in a while."

The immortals laugh a bit amongst themselves as Mrs. Butler handles the situation. "Justin, do you think Liam would want a regular angel?"

He thought about it and she had a point. "So why is she special?"

"She's the queen." There was a stunned silence as all eyes fell on Armin. "Well she is." He said defensively as he burrowed into Jean's side.

"Well not yet." Caleb clarified taking the attention off of the small child. "She s considered a Princess until she becomes an adult."

"What Liam is after," James interseads, "Is the power she has."

"All angels that are here on earth are under her command." Jean continues. "And your earth itself is dependent on the balance she provides. From the looks of it though, it's nearing the end of its rope trying to balance without her."

Now Ryan spoke up. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's almost April and there's still snow everywhere." James tone was flat as he spoke. "Nothing is budding or germinating. All the seeds are rotting. Should I go on?"

Ryan shook his head. He couldn't believe she was dealing with all of that and never said anything. "Now I know you all didn't come here to tickle polar bears," his mom began. "So what is your plan going to be to get her back?"

 

After retreating to the basement and several hours of discussing, arguing, and in Caleb and Jean's case, fist fighting, a decision was made.

"While Ryan is with Tehew, Jean and I will go down to Fragnot's and tell people to get ready." Caleb explained.

"Ready for what?" Mrs. Butler asked.

"Once Tehew is gone you have about a week to prepare yourselves for Liam's counter attack." James pointed out. "Precious's purity spell will only last for so long so anyone that can needs to defend themselves and those around them."

"How bad is the onslaught going to be?"

Jean chuckled from his perch on a book shelf (he had expanded and chose to reform there.) "You've heard about the ten plagues on Egypt right? Well that all happened under circumstances similar to this."

"But wait," Ryan objected. "What would that make the Israelites?"

Jean shrugged. "Collateral."

"Back the the present century please boys." Caleb said. "You can talk about that later. We need a start date. This can't be sudden. Tehew and Liam have to believe they are winning"

"We also need to know who is going to dispatch Tehew and how it's going to be done." Mrs. Butler pointed out. The room fell silent as they thought.

"Give him holy water to drink." All eyes fell on Ryan prompting him to elaborate. "Mess free and kills him from the inside."

"Makes sense." James sighed. "But who's going to convince him to drink it?"

"I will." He said abruptly. "Tehew should know by now that I'm no threat to Christina. I can get close enough."

"You know he has a point." Caleb shrugged, backing him up. "If I give this Christina food she won't go near it. The real Christina would at the very least take a bite then yell about how I can't cook." A collective laugh went up from the group lightening the mood for a moment. "But I've seen her eat with him so he looks to be our best bet."

"So it's decided then?" Someone asked. All present nodded.


	35. chapter 35

"Well start in a month." Caleb decided. "Gives us time to warn the people and the surrounding areas and to tell the Aboveland King."

"What will he do?" I asked.

"Most likely send help so the seasons can change." James said looking through some papers. I look around and see that Ryan had already gone back upstairs so I did the same. I found him in the living room staring out of the window watching the snow fall.

"It seems as though we've just started a war." He said to me. Well to my reflection actually.

"It looks that way." I take a seat behind him and watch his face twist and relax according to whatever he was thinking.

Telling Ryan to calm down was suicidal so I opted to watch his internal debate and listen when he finally exploded. "You know what I don't understand?" He began almost on cue. "Why did she keep this all to herself?" He turned to face me but didn't quite make it. His eyes stop on a picture of him and I when were were toddlers. His voice became low. "How do you live like that."

"She must have thought it was for the best." I offer. "You know how she is. If she can find a way to carry the world on her shoulders she will."

"And she does." He almost laughed. "Doesn't she trust us?"

"She's trying to protect us."

"Aren't we supposed to protect her?" Ryan stopped and finally looked at me. He was visibly angry and that isn't a normal sight. I could see him knowing at the lower left corner of his lip as if he was ready to pout.

"We can get her back. Ok? I can tell it won't be easy but I can feel it. We'll get her back." I needed to reassure him. Not for his sake but for mine. Whenever things went down, Ryan has always been the head while I was the heart. I need him to be sure so I can be sure. I focused back on Ryan who looked about ready to chew off his lip. "Stop. You'll bust a hole in it like you did during entrance exams." He stops mid thought and sort of glares at me. I get a mumbled 'whatever' and he goes back into his own world. I decide to take my leave and head into the kitchen where his mom was.

"Hey there sweetie." She said as I walked in. "How ya feelin'?"

I shrug and take a seat at the counter. "Mixed up." Mrs. Butler sighs and comes to sit next to me. "Does my mom know about any of this?"

Mrs. B is quiet fir a bit. "She knows enough to not worry when you disappear for days at a time. But I don't think she knows about the severity of the situation now."

"Will she be safe?" There was more than a shake in my voice when I spoke but I needed to know.

"Your mother has some magical blood but not enough to be a target right away." I nod as I look past her at the clock on the wall. It read 2:45. I haven't realized that it had gotten so late. I get up to leave but Mrs. B stops me. "You should sleep here tonight. It's safer together and I can hear Ryan walking a hole in to the carpet." She smiles hopefully and I nod an 'ok'.

After a bit of convincing on my part and ranting on his, Ryan and I managed to get to sleep.


	36. chapter 36

Caleb's POV

After the decision was made I went out for some air. It felt good to use my wings again. I flew as high as I could and decided to sit on one of the few clouds that were floating by. That's when I let it out.

Christina is in trouble and I don't know how to help her. History seemed to be repeating itself. War was coming and there is no stopping it. I didn't want to lose anyone else. I screamed and cried until my voice was shot then threw myself face down into the fluff of the cloud.

"You've always been one for dramatics." Who he hell? As I turn to face them they spoke again. "Don't get up. If you see me this whole deal is off. Give me a second." There is a shuffling sound. "Ok now you can get up." The voice said from behind me now.

"Who are you?" I heard my voice shaking. I was in no shape to fight.

"Has it been so long you've forgotten my voice?" There was a small laugh. I felt my chest tighten. This was impossible and given the discoveries made in the past few hours, I didn't want to believe it.

"It has." I try to turn but a hand on my back stopped me. "Look. I've had a real rough few hours and I'm not tryin to deal with any more shape shifters. So if you're gonna kill me just do it."

"Caleb Josiah Franke," the stranger barked. "how dare you insinuate that I am not who I'm supposed to be?"

There was no more doubt. "Lizzy?"

The softens returned to the voice. "It's good to see you again."

"How-?"

"I made a deal with the guard. As long as you don't look at me I can be out here."

I reached my hand back towards her. "Can I touch you at least?" A soft hand slid into mine and I couldn't help but smile. "I've missed you."

"I know." She sighed. "I've been watching."

"It's been tough." I admit. "And it doesn't look like it's going to get better anytime soon." I felt Lizzy's thumb begin to rub circles into my skin. "I mean, she's just a baby in comparison to everyone and everything around her. And now I've failed her." I keep talking and eventually babel myself into a puddle of tears.

When I finally calmed down Elizabeth had her head resting in the center of my back. "You would have made a wonderful father." 'If only.' I thought bitterly. We stayed silent as we both thought about that night. "Well what are we thinking about that for?. Lizzy's said changing the subject like she always did when things got too emotional. "I went how I would have wanted. In the heat of battle with a sword on one hip and my lover on the other."

I smile at her voice and I feel her fingers graze my jaw and up to my ear resulting in an involuntary shiver. "Caleb are your eyes closed?" I close them and nod. A breeze moved infront of me and something warm touched my lips. Even though we stayed that way for a while I whined for more when she pulled away. "I have to go now." She whispered.

"When will I see you again?"

"In your dreams lover boy." She chuckled. "I'll try to help you where I can, and I'll alert the King of the situation."

I almost open my eyes in shock. "How did you know I needed to talk to the King?"

"Darling the only person who knows you better than I do is your mother." Her sharp voice was counteracted by a soft kiss once more before the air changed and I could tell I was alone.

I flew home and despite what was happening, I felt at ease. Of course she was still with me. Maybe not physically but she was there. As I nodded off I had a new confidence for what was ahead.


	37. Chapter 37

Ryan's POV

As the days counted down, the air around the town began to change. I began to recognize safety charms skillfully hidden in houses and businesses, and I caught the whisper of protective spells as I milled around town.

With a week left until I had to put our plan in motion, we boys got together again. This time Justin's mom joined us. Caleb called the meeting to order "alright everyone, we don't have much time." He began. "Miss Kat, nice of you to join us." She nodded at him and he continued. "So I've been looking at the logistics of this plan and I realized that once we get rid of Tehew we'll have about four hours to clear the country." There was stunned silence as he continued. "Everyone's bags have to be ready. I'll handle the paperwork when we get to the border and,"

"Wait! Where will you be going?" I look over at my mom and for the first time in all of this she looked worried.

"New York. James has a place for us to stay." The reality was setting in. We were about to be on the run from god knows what and for god knows how long.

"One more thing." This time it was Jean speaking. "We wanted to put the boys in a home schooling curriculum seeing as they won't be able to attend for some time. I've submitted their information and I'll personally cover the expenses. But we can't let them fall behind in class."

The moms dismissed themselves to convene over the new information. James and Jean broke off and continued talking in a different language while Caleb came over to me. "How are you feeling?" I shrug. "I wish I could tell you to be ok but I don't see the future."

"What about Jean?" Justin said from behind me.

"He can only see the past." Caleb explained. "The present is visible but hazy. The future changes."

There was nothing else said as we waited about an hour passes and both mothers comedown with red puffy eyes. My mom spoke first. "After talking about it, Kathryn and I have decided that this is out of our hands." She reached for me and I scooted closer to her and let her hold me. "After you boys call us from New York, Kat and I have planned to take a memory clearing potion." The others screamed against it but they were shushed. "If anyone were to come after us they wouldn't be able to get any info out of us."

"And if they kill you for it?"James looked worried.

My mom smiled down at me and held me closer. "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."

Even though we prodded her for more she wouldn't say anything. The night ended with tears being shed all around.

 

On the morning of the day we planned to dispatch Tehew was calm. My bags were packed and picked up by Jean who managed to rent a van for our escape. My mom gave me a care pack covered in charms and full (actually overflowing) with food, water, and blankets. We did our good byes indoors to stay inconspicuous but then I had to leave.

The plan was to create a snow storm that closed the school and roads down. Then I was to invite "Christina" for some hot chocolate in the park. When I asked at school the week before she said yes so I shot her a text as I made my way to our agreed meeting point. "See you at the rink in five?"

"Umm. Yeah."I got back more than five minutes later. I felt in my pocket for the bottle of holy water. While I waited I bought us some skates. Not much longer after, Christina arrived.

"Hey." The heaviness in the voice was obvious now. "Sorry I'm late. I couldn't find my scarf."

"No worries." I smiled up at her. It was still Chris's face, I couldn't help it. "Get laced up."

I get a small smile in return as she scans my face. "Your eyes look sad."

"No, they're just reacting to the cold air."

She nods and finishes lacing up. We finally get on the rink and lazily go in circles making idle chatter about nothing the way we normally would, if this was normal. After some time I finally ran out of things to say. So I just took her hand. This Christina looked shocked and for a moment tried to pull away. "Sorry." I mumble. "Should have warned you that my hands were cold."

"You think?" She laughed.

My phone began to buzz in my pocket. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. That was the signal. "Speaking of cold hands, you want to go get some hot chocolate? I saw a stand somewhere." After returning our skates, we found a trolley man selling coffee and hot chocolate. Christina stands off to the side as I order and pay then we grab a bench to wait. We were quiet but I kept looking her over. "Remember how you told me your eyes change color?" I suddenly asked.

"Yeah." The response was unsure so that meant that there was probably no access to the real Christina's memories.

"Can you turn them other colors besides purple?"

A smirk crossed her lips. Christina doesn't smirk. Scowl yes, but never a smirk. Before she could answer, our order was called and I opted to go get it. While still at the stand I poured holy water into both of our cups earning a look from the vendor and then a nod. More people must know about this than I thought. I take the drinks back over to the bench and look at Chris one more time. "Change you eyes red and I'll give you your drink."

"What?! No!" She reached for her cup but I backs away and took a sip. The more she protested the more I drank. Finally she gave in. "I'm only going to do this once so pay attention." We held eye contact and I watched as the purple deepened to burgundy and then lightened to a crimson color.

I felt the smile slip from my face as I handed over her drink. "I was hoping you wouldn't do it. Whatever you ordered was delicious."

Her eyes stay red as she gulps down about half of her drink in victory. Suddenly hot chocolate splatters the floor and Christina's eyes turn completely white. "What have you done?" Her voice was guttural now. "Do you know what you have just started?" She crumbles to the ground and begins coughing up a black tar like substance.

I watched as the shape of Christina dissolved and revealed the true form of the shape shifting demon who had been in Christina's place. "Tehew." He looked startled by the sound of his name.

"How do you know me?" His voice was pained as more tar fell from his mouth.

"Who sent you?"

"The Helsian King," He managed out painfully. "Lord Liam Vaultspawn. Son of Beelzebub. First born of Lilith." Tehew looked up at me and this whited out eyes began to water the same black goop. I noticed the ends of him smoking slightly. "The end is coming now. The King has his Queen. It's over. It's over. It's--"

The rest of his sentence is lost as he crumbles into a heap of ash. Before I could completely register what had happened, the ground began to shake. I run back to the rink and see people running for cover as what looked like pieces of glass began falling from the sky. The sound of a car horn pierced the din and I saw Jean waving me over.

I make a run for it and as I get close the back door opens and I dive in. Jean guns it and we leave Stratford behind.


	38. Chapter 38

Justin's POV

My goodbye with my mom was quiet. She held on to me as we waited for Jean to come get me. "You know," she wasn't one for too much silence. "When you were born, it was snowing."

"Really? But I was born in May."

"It was a late snow storm. Seemed to have come out of nowhere. Almost like the one last night." Her voice sounded like she was hinted at something. Nothing more is said about it as she wanders around our apartment nervously.

I take in the sight of her for what will be the last time for along time. We had the same light brown hair but hers was faded blonde at the tips. Her eyes were a warm hazel while mine were a deep cinnamon. Same slightly down turned shape though. Mom's nose came to a soft point while mine was sharp like my dad's. Her cheeks were red from age while mine were still red from youth. Overcome with the reality of not seeing her everyday, I go and wrap her in a hug.

"Don't you dare start crying now." No sooner had she said it did the tears begin to fall. She cradled me. "Oh you." The tears were in her voice but not on her face. "When all of this is over, and you boys come back with Chrisy, Rose and I have prepared a potion that will bring back all of my memories of you. So don't cry because you think I,m going to for get you forever."

We sat on the couch and I tried my best to curl up on her lap. Finally there was a knock at the door. Jean let himself in and after a quick greeting began grabbing my bags. "We don't have much time. Ryan is already at the park with the shapeshifter. We have to be there in time to pick him up."

Mom and I break apart and she goes into the kitchen and comes back with two small bottles. One had stardust which she gave to Jean. "I thought you might like this. I took it off of a patient years ago. They said 'when you can't find the stars in the sky, use the ones in your pocket.'" Jean smiles and pockets it thanking her and then going down to the car. The other bottle was a green and gold syrup consistency. "This is for when you want to see what is going on in town. Two drops in a bowl of water and you'll be able to see everything in town."

Before I can say anything Jean honks. Not to be rude but time was of the essence. I receive a kiss on the forehead and am pushed out the door. As soon as I'm seated in the van Jean guns it and we head to the park.

"Hey." Jean handed me his phone. "When I park give Ryan the signal and jump in the back."

I nod and look at the other bags he had back there. "Where are Caleb and James?"

"They're meeting us at the border." Jean said highly irritated. "Apparently vans cramp James style and Caleb went with him to keep an eye on him."

"You don't sound to happy about it."

"When you've known those to as long as I have you won't be happy about it either."

We drive in silence and as instructed, give Ryan the signal and climb into the back. From where I was I saw Tehew's real form and it was gruesome. He was all grey with black spines on his face. But his face was covered in a black goo which must have been his blood. I couldn't hear what was being said, but as soon as Tehew turned into an ash heap, an earthquake struck and Jean told me to open the door. As shards of glass began coming down, Ryan jumped in and we were off.


	39. Chapter 39

Overview

"What the heck is this stuff?" Ryan asked as more "glass" fell from the sky.

"It's the protective barrier Precious had put up." Jean explained. "Killing the shapeshifter disrupted it's protective field causing it to shatter."

Ryan moved up to the front seat and buckled himself in. "How long til New York?"

Jean checked the clock. "Nine hours and change if we don't stop." He glanced at the two boys now in his protection. Both were pale. "It's ok to be scared guys. It's not like this happens everyday."

 

It took about an hour and thirty minutes to reach the border and then Justin's phone rang. "Where are you?" It sounded like Caleb.

Jean told him to put it on speaker. "We're trying to park. Where are you?"

There was conversation in the background with a voice that sounded like James. "Visitors center. Currency office."

The line went dead and the three look at each other. "You two get out and go find him." Jean said pulling over. "Call me when you find them."

Justin and Ryan get on to the sidewalk and watch as Jean drives off. They looked around and saw signs in various languages pointing to where the visitors center was and found their way there easily. Finding James and Caleb was another story.

The pair was eventually found among tourists buying knick knacks and snack foods.

"Here they are." James said when he noticed them. "Where is Jean?" Justin and Ryan answered in unison. "Well then we can start when he gets here. Until then, look around but don't be suspicious."

When Jean finally turns up, they go to the nearest coffee shop and began to sort themselves out. Caleb started by passing out different parcels. "Here are your passports and visas. Ryan, Justin, seeing as neither of you have criminal records or questionable histories theses are your real papers. Don't loose them or your mothers will kill me. As for us three, I managed to find and compile enough of a life line to make our passports seem real. Any questions?" No one moved. Everyone stared into their drinks solemnly thinking about what was to come. "Alright. Once we cross the border and get to Buffalo New York we can buy snacks and call Rose. Then it's on to Manhattan."

The group broke apart and went to their cars. "When your passports are being checked just smile and only answer exactly what you're asked." Jean said as they inched forward in the toll traffic.

The suspense was mind numbing as they slowly made their way through customs. Even when they themselves cleared the hurdle, Jean didn't relax until he saw a small black corvette pull up next to him then speed away.

As planned Buffalo was a rest stop and Ryan and Justin called their mothers. "My my my. Only fifteen and already trying to save the world." Rose teased.

"We're saving Christina mom." Ryan defended. "The world is just collateral."

"Remember that and you'll make it home." She laughed.

"Mom?" Justin asked I a shaky voice. "What's the potion going to do to you and aunt Kat?"

"Well, when we drink it, our memories of the two of you will be erased." She said matter of factly.

"But I made it so that when we see you in person the effects will be reversed." Rose reassured knowing her boy was scared. "So don't worry about us ok. Stay safe." They say their last few 'I love you's' before the phone gets handed to Caleb who has the final words with them.

"Next stop, Manhattan." Jean said excitedly as they hit the highway. "Haven't been there since the late 60s." With that, much to Justin's duress, an 8 hour history lesson began.

"I was born in 1496 in France..."

 

As the car pulled up to number 52 West 94th st, New York City, Justin all but ran out of the vehicle. "If we have to do another road trip, I am not riding with those two."

Ryan and Jean also got out but were still in a deep conversation about what really happened during the Sinking of the titanic. "It sank far too quickly for it to have been double hulled." Ryan pointed out.

"I was there." Jean refuted. "I saw the thing go down and I still remember being brought here to Ellis island."

Bags were brought in and roommates were set up, then everyone gathered around a table in the dining room and for a while, just stared at each other.

"This place has 5 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, a dining room, a study, and a full kitchen and you managed to put pine wood in every corner of it." Caleb said breaking the silence.

"It's Scottish pine thank you." James said in defense of his decor. "Wanted to be reminded of home."

"Home sickness aside, whats our plan now?" Jean didn't want to dampen the mood but they were here for a reason.

Caleb sighed and took out a notebook. "Not much we can do right now. We need to get settled and start looking for clues. I don't know how long that can take."

Ryan and Justin shared a worried glance. "There has to be somewhere we can start." The longer this took the more dangerous it could become.

"There is nothing we can do tonight." Caleb yawned and checked the time. "It's after midnight. We can start with breakfast tomorrow and spend the day getting accustomed to our surroundings."

The majority agreed and called it a night.


	40. Chapter 40

Ariadne's POV

There was no reason for it to be this cold. I pulled my beanie down over my ears and checked the shopping list my uncle gave me again. I had everything and that meant I could get out of this stupid snow.

I cut through the mix of New Yorkers and pause at the opening of an alleyway. I look up and down the street before going in. I had to see if they had a new riddle up yet.

"What is the most curious letter?"

The wall I front of me was graffitied with bright orange and green letters with a freshly painted over background. Were they even trying anymore? I found a can of white spray paint hidden behind a dumpster and used it to write my answer. "Y." I was hoping for more of a challenge tonight.

I make it home safely and let myself in. "Tío Adrian, I'm back." The sound of a sport played on the tv as he called a greeting back to me.

"Did you get everything on the list?" I dump the groceries on him as an answer. "Alrighty then."

As he gets up to put them away, I make myself comfortable in an armchair and grab my notebook. I write down today's riddle and sigh.

"What's up water bug?" Uncle Adrian catches my attention and tosses a pop tart my way. "Seem a bit down. Did your parents call?"

"No." My dad did call though. I just didn't answer. "Do you know anything about the riddles that get graffitied on a wall a few blocks from here?"

Tío Adrian thinks for a moment but shakes his head. "Why? Is it becoming a problem?"

I sigh. "No. They're just running out of material."

He tosses his head back and laughs and I see the mirror image of my dad. I miss him but I won't admit it. Yet.

My uncle and I watch the highlights of a football game until he sends me off to bed. "You got school kid. I have to be somewhat responsible."


	41. Chapter 41

Caleb's POV

The first day took about a week in actuality. Between getting the boys enrolled in on line school and looking for people who were willing to talk, we seemed to be getting nowhere.

"You'd think that everyone would be comfortable in a city like this." Jean tossed himself onto the couch and covered his face with one of Justin's discarded text books. "This is a place where literally anything can happen, and no one knows of a portal and if I mention the princess they don't seem to understand."

I go over to him, put his head in my lap and scratch behind his ears the way he likes. "This is also a city where your best source of information is a hobo or a crack head." He laughed. "Also, here she's known as the Queen of Angels. So you've been asking for the wrong person." Jean cracks his eyes open and looks up at me. I had forgotten how vibrant they were. "Do you remember the Amber room?"

Various emotions passed over his face before he answered. "The original one?"

"You know exactly which one." I got up from under him and went to the door. "It was 1923. I snuck into the palace disguised as help. You were an acclaimed violinist who was being honored with the Fredrik Güdanta medal for his work." He cut me a look but I kept going. "As I finished pulling on my tux, the delicate sound of strings drifted up to my hiding place." I run around the room scattering things as I went. "I pursued the sound of course as I've been known to let my curiosity get the best of me, and I was lead to the Great Amber Room." Jean laughed for once. "And that was when I saw him. At the time his name was Declan Rowan but I've come to know him by several names."

"So what happened while Declan played?"

I knew he would play along at some point. "I felt like sprouting wings and flying to everyone I knew to tell them about it. I almost did too, until I realized the music had stopped and been replaced with applause."

"And what did you do after that?"

I pull Jean off of the couch and begin dancing with him to an imaginary tune. "I hunted him down and cornered him out in the garden. I looked in to his eyes and saw two pieces of Amber that rendered all the jewels in the palace worthless." I look into his eyes and feel as if we were back in 1923. "Then, without much thought, I..."

My words were cut short by Jean pressing his lips to mine. I don't know how long we stayed like that but by the time we came up for air we had moved to the couch and James was in an arm chair flipping through a newspaper. There was a scream of shock and the sound of fumbling as we pulled apart. "Good to see you two getting along." We go to make up excuses but get cut off. "We've all been romantically involved with each other over the centuries so this was bound to happen. I just wanted to make sure you guys didn't break anything. Some of the stuff in here is older than the both of you combined."

 

Later that evening James felt generous and decided to treat us to dinner. "We'll be going to Rory's Rose so please dress accordingly." I explained to the boys that it was a classier version of Fragnots and it really only meant they had to wear blazers and not Nike's.

At around seven we all left for Rory's and when we got there we were confronted by a rather plain but highly effective security system.

"It's a riddle." Jean sounded surprised

"Yes." James wasn't.

The riddle was, as follows: "I am teary-eyed but never cry. Silver tongue, but never lie. Double winged, but never fly. Air cooled, but never dry."

Thus is the nonsense that is my life. "Why is it whenever we go out to eat, something goes wrong?"

"It's not my fault!"

We fall into an(other) argument until a voice cuts through the din. "You guys here to solve the riddle too?"

Everything stops and we all stare at the new comer. She looked young visually at least. But I know as well as anyone looks can be deceiving. She passes us and goes to read the riddle. Once she was done she looked at us. "So what do you boys think it is?"

"Didn't your parents ever teach you not to talk to strangers?" Jean sounded more upset at being called a boy than anything else.

"Not really." The girl shrugged. "Seeing as almost everyone in a twenty mile radius was either a family member or close friend." She looks back over to the wall. "Do any of you know anything that has 4 wings?"

"Dragon flies?" She turns sharply to face Ryan whom she must not have seen earlier.

"They fly." She said after a once over.

Ryan and Justin shared a confused look. I decide to end the nonsense. "Sorry, I'm going to interrupt here. Who are you?"

"Oh, sorry 'bout that. I'm Ariadne Ruiz." She didn't look offended at my bluntness either.

"How often do you come to solve the riddles here?"

"Everyday. Sometimes twice if I'm lucky. Why?" Now she was looking worried.

I look and see James who was previously sulking but was now interested. He realized it too. "Aie ahool anooko?" (Are you lost human?) He asked watching carefully.

"What? No. Who said I was lost?" Gotcha.

"No one. Never mind that." I change the subject. "I realized we didn't introduce ourselves. I'm Caleb. The pouty faced one to my right is James, Jean is behind you, fellow riddle lover here is Ryan and his best friend who hasn't blinked since you walked over is Justin."

Those that are able to mutter a hello and Ariadne turns her attention back to the riddle. "So do any of you have an answer to this?"

"Well, it looks like it's one thing with two examples." Ryan walked over to the wall. "It's some form of silver liquid."

"And the wings?" Jean asked finally joining the game.

"Mercury!" All eyes fell on Ariadne again. "Mercury is a silver liquid that looks like tears and is the Roman version of Hermes."

Ryan looked at the rest of us. "It's worth a shot don't you think?"

She picked up what looked like a spray can and wrote the answer. Afterwards she grabbed her bag and started to go. "This was cool. Didn't know other people noticed the riddles."

Justin, finally spoke. "You're leaving?" A look of confusion crossed her face. Almost recognition.

"Well yeah. We solved the riddle right? There is nothing else to do." As she spoke, the wall split to reveal a lavish foyer.

"Welcome to Rory's Rose." James said peeling himself from the wall. "As part of the security procedure the one to answer the riddle has to enter the building so the doors can lock."

Something akin to fear began to appear on Ariadne's face. "This is a shitty security system if a kid like me can figure it out." She tried to play it off.

"Actually." It was Jean this time. "Not everyone can see this ally. Haven't you ever wondered why no one has ever seen you in here?"

"Whether she understands or not she has to come with us now." Oh right. We had a reservation.

"What!? Go with you where?" She tried to run but he caught her. "NO!! SOMEBODY HELP!!"

"Hush you." He tried to keep a grip on her. "We're just taking you to dinner. This is a restaurant. STOP MOVING!"

After a bit more screaming and fighting, James manages to subdue her and Jean casts a simple spell that turned her army green pullover into a classically shaped trench coat and added about two inches to the heels of her black boots. Both men take a moment to admire their work then head inside with James calling for damnation on all of us if they've given away our table.


	42. Chapter 42

Ryan's POV

Justin and I stayed behind to make sure Ariadne was ok. "Sorry about them. I got pulled into this nonsense almost the same way. But I don't get a make over."

I tried to keep talking to her to calm her down. "Are they going to kill me?" Oh god. Please don't start crying.

"No." I reassured her. "There's a better chance of them killing each other." She groaned and I looked at Justin for help but he was still staring at her. Though not as blatantly. "Come on." I extended my hand to her. "You can sit between us." She takes it and we make our way in.

The inside of Rory's Rose was lavish. There were reds and golds everywhere with some pieces of architecture looking to date back to the early 1900's.

"Welcome to Rory's Rose. My name is Exuberance and I'll be your server this evening." I looked past James and saw a rather handsome young man standing before us. He had six menus in his hands watched each of us with disproportionately large hazel eyes.

"Don't worry," Jean whispered to the three of us. "He's just scanning for food allergies and food preferences. Each menu will be individualized." Just as he said, when we looked at the meal options, almost none were the same.

"So Ariadne, where are you from?" I wanted to keep her talking while we waited for our meals.

"San Diego California."

Justin, who looked to be warming up to her, joined the conversation. "How did you end up in New York?"

"I came out here for the summer and just never went back." She seemed kind of sad about it for a moment. "But I still get phone calls so it's like I never left."

She smiled at him and it almost looked like he short circuited. Thankfully our food arrived and Ariadne's attention was diverted elsewhere. Across the table I noticed grumbling between the "grown ups". I tapped Jean who was the closest to me. "Everything ok?"

Jean shrugged. "I don't know. They're speaking in an Aboveland dialect."

That didn't make sense. "If James is a demon, how is he able to speak in any of the languages?"

James heard my question. "I'm a fallen angel. By biblical terms at least. I was born an angel but about 300 years ago or so I fell in love with a demon and gave up being an angel to be with him. Needless to say it didn't work out.

"And he's now in a bad mood because Exuberance is the love child that destroyed his relationship." Caleb said not to kindly.

"I told you I'm not in a bad mood." This was going to get ugly.

"Yes you are. Your pissed because something beautiful came out of that whole shit storm."

As more words in dialect were said, I backed up and pulled Ariadne and Justin with me. Caleb and James rose to their feet and shouted things at each other that must have been unsavory. Jean foreseeing an ending managed to quickly encase them in an energy bubble. Just as it closed, Caleb grabbed one of the forks on the table and sunk it into James' neck.

We all let out differing sounds of horror. "This is why we can never go out anywhere." Jean groused. He sighed as he got up to push Caleb and James away from the table. "Please excuse us."

After a few more moments of stunned silence, the three of us that remained returned to our food. "See, I told you they'd try to kill each other." I joked to lighten the mood.

Ariadne picked at her food. "Are they always like this?"

"Yes and no." Justin shrugged. "Depends on who started it."

"And how many years it's been going on."

 

The rest of dinner was not as eventful. The three came back having apologized and made up and Ariadne seemed to warm up to all of us. It was almost as if she had met us before.

After dinner we took it upon ourselves to walk her home. "So will this outfit disappear by morning like in the movies?"

James, who was lagging behind with Caleb, shook his head. "Only if you want it to. Leave them near the window before you go to sleep and they will return to normal by morning."

Ariadne continued on chatting with us and asking questions completely unfazed by the topics of immortals and magic.

When we arrived at her apartment we were invited up to meet her uncle Adrian who smiled as Justin and I entered. When Caleb, James, and Jean entered it was completely different. "It's happened hasn't it?" They looked taken aback for a moment then Caleb nodded. "There is a prophecy."

Ariadne looked around concerned. "What is going on here? Tío what are you talking about? What happened?"

Adrian turns to his niece. "There is a family secret that I think you need to know about now." She looked at him concerned. "Ari, you come from a race of merpeople. We all have the ability to see the future but in different ways. Your father can see the future of those around him. I see the future of each of our family members. But Ari, you gained your grandmother's ability to predict the lives of royalty. So those dreams you've been having, those are premonitions and now they're coming true."

She looks at all of us. That's heavy. "So you mean I wasn't sent out here because of the wolf attack? I was sent here to fulfill some destiny?"

"It was both!" Adrian really wasn't prepared for this. "If you weren't sent out here you would have tried to come out here on your own and your father didn't want that. He knew that the wolf bite was effecting you and you would have stubbornly made it out here by hook or crook."

Jean stepped closer trying to ease the situation. "What is this about a wolf bite?"

Ariadne turned from her uncle. "When I was 13 I was bitten by a wolf."

"And this wasn't a normal wolf was it?" James' question hung in the air and Adrian was silent.

"Are you serious?" Ari's voice was shrill. "Did you think I wouldn't find out? I can't believe you." If anything else was said, it was lost in the slamming of a door.

"How old is Ariadne now?" Caleb asked after a while.

"She's 15."

Wouldn't she have transitioned by now? Caleb's face went from that of concern to almost giddy with joy. "James." His voice sounded official. "You owe me $14."

"What?" James looked him over.

"Back in 1895 you made a bet with me." He elaborated. "You said there was no such thing as a fish wolf."

"There still isn't you dunce."

Caleb's smile just got bigger. "Actually, if Ariadne is an aquadian, which she is. And she was bitten by a werewolf, which she was, the aquadian, being the superior creature would counteract the wolf transition." He looked around but no one seemed to be following him.

"She has werewolf behavior but she is still an aquadian! She's a fish wolf. You owe me $14."

Understanding something the rest of us didn't, James began arguing with Caleb. Jean Justin and I went over to where Adrian was sitting with his head in his hands.

"I didn't want her to find out like this." He said as we sat down. Jean placed his hand on Adrian's shoulder and gave him a comforting smile. "Galexmos?"

"Yeah."

"Mr. Ruiz?" Justin leaned forward and spoke in a low voice. "What was the prophecy you had about us?"

He leaned back but kept his eyes on the carpet. "Before the Pollux flower blooms at 16, three men of no age will come with news of a phantom queen. Pollux will join their ranks and they will teach her all she must know. None will stop her. Confusion will blind her. But curiosity will lead her." He looked back at us. "She will meet the seer, befriend the human, and in the final battle, slay the demon."

"But who is Pollux?"

"Every aquadian is given an ancient name." Caleb said having joined the conversation. "Xarese's other name was Evander. These are the names no one calls them by save for in prophecy."

James checked his watch. "There isn't anything more we can do tonight. We best be on our way. Mr. Ruiz, until the currents bring us together."


End file.
